Love Ain't Easy, It's Ezzy
by The Kobold Necromancer
Summary: TDA's Playa des Losers is a hotbed of drama, frustration, and hormones. Tempers and passions flare, and a new couple, Ezekiel and Izzy, is formed by the chaos. A mature Ezzy story; heed the warnings, please. Completed.
1. Playa des Losers 2: Electric Boogaloo

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**Summary** - With all the problems, drama, and romance happening at TDA's Playa des Losers (PdL2), it's enough to drive one crazy. Luckily, Izzy is crazy already, and she and Ezekiel are going to find something incredible in the other: love. The others, of course, are going to find this weird, but they have their own issues to deal with.

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Please take the pairings and rating warning into consideration before you read this story. I really don't want comments complaining that I disgusted you and/or scarred you for life (if I wanted to do that, I wouldn't do it via fanfiction, buahaha). The twenty-two contestants/main characters in this story are **18 years old**, due to the nature of the story.

**Pairings** - This story's main pairing is **Izzy** and **Ezekiel**. The side pairings are going to be a combination of canon and fanon. Canon includes **Bridgette**/**Geoff**, **Duncan**/**Courtney**, and **Harold**/**Leshawna**. Fanon includes **Eva**/**Noah**, **Cody**/**Gwen**, and the love triangle of **Tyler**/**Lindsay**/**Owen**.

The other campers are subject to pairings. I might or might not pair them up, depends on story and fan requests. The available ones are **Katie** and **Sadie**, **Justin**, **DJ**, **Heather**, **Beth**, and **Trent** (who should get someone, since Gwen and Cody are pairing up).

**Rating** - **Warning! Warning!** This is seriously rated M, or rated R if that is better for you. This is why:

_Detailed descriptions of sexual scene_s around second base level can be expected. Yes, this involves a lot of stuff that's not actually sex, but **if**** you're under sixteen, you might want to think twice about this story**. (Just go to the next scene to skip the sexual content if you feel the need.) This first chapter contains such content, to give you an idea how things will happen. The campers are **18** in this story, so they are all of legal age.

_Swearing_ is pretty bad at times, but I'll warn you if any 'F' bombs are going to be launched. _Violence_, though nothing really strong, nothing serious or fatal. There will be a case or two of _alcohol_ usage.

**Time Setting** - This takes place during TDA, after Izzy has been voted off. Also, I'd like to note that after this, this story will not be following the TDA story line or campers being voted off in exactly the same way.

All this being said, enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 1** - _Love at First Near-Death Experience_

* * *

Izzy kicked the door of the Lame-o-Sine open. Stomping out, she cracked her neck.

"There's gonna be hell to pay when E-Scope finds out where those two bouncers are living," she grumbled to herself.

She looked in front of her to see a large iron gate, the bars shaped to form a "PdL" on one side and "2" on the other.

"_Chris must have paid a little extra money for this,_" she thought as she approached them. "_Probably just for appearances, that dickweed._"

Looking up at the cast iron gates, she sighed as she realized this wouldn't be easy to do. Jumping up on the "2," she flipped over the top and landed on her feet on the other side.

"I still got it," she congratulated herself.

"There was a button to open them, crazy girl."

Izzy looked up and saw Noah, as well as several other members who were oust from Total Drama Action, staring at her.

Noah was sitting alone, a book (very unsurprisingly) in his lap. Eva was sitting opposite from him, in her bathing suit as well. Cody and Tyler were under a beach table, playing a card game. Bridgette and Geoff were cuddling in the pool, and Katie and Sadie were floating on their pool chairs in the water.

Izzy took all this in, like a spy surveying her destination. She noted that Courtney and Ezekiel were nowhere to be seen. No matter, she would deal with them later, she was sure of this.

Grinning, she stood up and posed. "E-Scope doesn't need a button," she declared. "She can scale walls!"

Noah rolled his eyes. Eva scoffed. Bridgette and Geoff from the pool continued to make out.

"Whoa, are you two _still_ sucking face?" Izzy asked, approaching the pool with a wide grin. "I would think that you'd need to come up for air."

"They don't," Noah remarked.

"Ooo, have they gone to second base? He squeeze her boobs a little?"

That did the trick. Both Geoff and Bridgette went red in the face and glanced over at Izzy, Bridgette with a disapproving glare.

"It worked, yipeee," the redhead cheered, jumping up and down. "But seriously, has he?"

"That's none of your business, Izzy," Bridgette snapped at her.

Izzy's face darkened into a nasty scowl. "My name is E-Scope," she snapped right back.

Storming towards a chair, she sat down, crossed her arms, and stuck her nose up.

"Are you still on that kick?" Eva, who was in the seat next to her, said. Her voice was filled with crankiness. "You didn't win the million, why is your name still different?"

"Maybe she just likes it more," Katie suggested.

"It's a dumb name."

Izzy glared at Eva, but the fitness buff didn't budge. Eva stared right back as she said, "And I'm quite glad you were voted off, Izzy. You-"

"E-Scope!"

"Shut up. You ditched Noah and I back on Wawanakwa."

"It's not my fault you couldn't keep up."

Izzy and Eva glared at each other, and everything seemed most unsettled; it was like watching a burning powder trail rushing towards the keg.

During this awkwardness, Cody excused himself from his card game with Tyler and headed over to Izzy. "Guys guys, please," he said to everyone, holding up his hands. "Izzy just got voted off, let's not be mean to her."

"E-Scope," Izzy barked, causing Cody to jump.

"Right, E-Scope, sorry," he corrected himself. He sat down next to her and patted the redhead's shoulder. "It wasn't fair that you were voted off."

"Especially since Justin is a douche bag," Tyler grumbled.

"He is not," Katie and Sadie declared angrily, glaring at the jock.

"He is too!"

"You're just jealous because Lindsay finds him really attractive," Katie snapped.

Tyler glared at her. "He's no better than Heather! He's just trying to sucker her and Beth into an alliance!"

"He _is_ jealous," Sadie said to Katie, who nodded.

The brunet jock slammed his fists on the table, scattering the cards. "I should have been in the contest, not him! I got further than him in TDI!"

"No, _I_ should have been in the contest," Eva shouted, sitting up in her chair. "Not you, you couldn't compete worth shit!"

"What did you say, you bitch?!"

"Come over here, you dipshit, I'll tear you apart!!"

"Guys guys GUYS," Cody shouted, holding up his hands. "Stop this! C'mon, you guys cannot fight!"

"And why not?" Eva asked, cracking her knuckles at Tyler.

"Because... um... the more we fight, the more Chris wins."

Everyone looked confused by this. Izzy snapped her fingers after a few seconds and said, "Ohhh, because if we get at each other, he gets good ratings and gets to laugh at us."

"Exactly, Izzy!"

"E-SCOPE!"

"Dah! Sorry, E-Scope!"

"There are no cameras here, Cody."

Courtney was walking over from the hotel, dressed in her gray bathing suit. Cody waved politely and she promptly ignored it. "I checked the area, and there are no cameras," she repeated as she sat down next to Noah. "He doesn't care what we do here, we're going to be interviewed during the show elsewhere."

"Like I care about what goes on with them," Noah grumbled as he read his book. "I don't care at all how they further humiliate themselves for money."

"Well said," Eva said.

"Chris decided, 'Screw us,' well screw you right back at you, Chris."

Eva and Noah exchanged sly smiles, and the others were wondering what was going on. Noah rarely smiled, Eva even less.

The only ones not that interested were Bridgette and Geoff, who had gone back to kissing; however, it was starting to slow down. The surfer girl's heart wasn't in it, and Geoff could sense it. He stopped kissing her long enough to stare into her beautiful, green eyes.

"You okay, Bridgette?"

"No... no, not really," she admitted. Her hand was placed on his heart, her affectionate way of asking him to stop kissing her.

"This has been happening a little bit more often than I like," he said, looking at her with a worried expression. "Is something bothering you, babe? Was it what Izzy said?"

"My name's E-Scope, damn it!"

Bridgette rolled her eyes at Izzy's shout, then looked back at her boyfriend. "I'm really sorry, Geoff. It's not her, it's not you..." She let out a sigh of frustration, shaking her head. "I... I really don't know what it is. I'm just not in the mood."

Geoff felt like pressing the issue, because making out with Bridgette really made him happy. But that sad gleam in her eyes spoke way louder than his hormones did, and he gave her a comforting hug. "Want to talk about it, babe?"

"Maybe later, sweetheart."

Meanwhile, Courtney had picked up a magazine and began rifling through it. "I should still be in that contest."

"Oh here we go again," Noah grumbled.

"What? WHAT?!" Courtney shouted, angrily throwing the magazine on the ground. "I have every right to be in season two!"

"You came in last place," Tyler said from the table. "You got to the Dock of Shame last!"

"So? I didn't sign up for this show to waste my life away watching other people compete! I'm eighteen, I'm suppose to working on my future plans, like career and college! I'm wasting my life here!"

"Yeah, we all are," Noah said. "It'd go a lot more smoothly if you weren't always bitching, moaning, and whining."

"Shut up, you cynical jackass."

"HEY," Eva roared, standing up and glaring at Courtney. "Don't you talk to him like that!"

"Okay okay, fine," Courtney said, shrinking up in her chair. "Fine, I won't insult Noah. What's it to you, Eva?"

"I'm... edgy, that's all," the fitness buff remarked. "I'm just really steamed."

"Boy, that's different," Tyler said under his breath.

"Can't we all get along?" Katie asked them as she drifted towards Bridgette and Geoff, gesturing to them. "We were like this when they arrived to! Loud and bickering and mean! Now we're doing it when Izzy just-"

"E-Scope," Izzy shouted, throwing her hands up. "Come on people, it's not that hard to remember! That's my name!"

Katie and Sadie exchanged glances, and the larger of the two was the first to speak. "But Izzy, we know you by your real name-"

Izzy turned her nose up at Sadie, then looked away. The larger BFFFL sighed and said, "Izzy, c'mon. It's your real name."

"It is not, I changed it! I have a right to change my name, it's my title! I am in charge my name and destiny!"

"But, like, your parents gave it to you," Sadie continued. "So it's special in that way, isn't it?"

Izzy blinked, and her expression became sad. She sighed and looked down at her legs. "Whatever," she said, defeated and miserable, quite un-Izzy-like.

Cody noticed this. "Hey, Iz... I mean, E-Scope, I know you've had a hard day. Cheer up, Red, this place is just as great as the first resort."

"You can cheer your chubby boyfriend on from here, that's for certain," Eva said.

"Owen is not E-Scope's boyfriend anymore," Izzy muttered.

"What?" several of the young men and women gasped.

"What happened?" Bridgette asked, concerned.

Izzy shrugged, still staring at her legs. "It just... we talked before I got voted off."

* * *

_"C'mon, Izzy," Owen was saying to her, "lighten up! You did your best performance, and you were great!"_

_"My name's not Izzy," she shouted at her large boyfriend. "It's E-Scope! And I sucked out there, Owen, I sucked!"_

_"Izzy..."_

_"E-SCOPE! And what's more, I was freaking robbed! I wasn't even given the right script, and Chef had it in for me!"_

_The redhead kicked at a fake bush, knocking the wooden prop over. She heaved in anger, then turned to a petrified Owen._

_"Well, I guess it doesn't matter," she added, her mood lightening up quickly. "We still lost. But they'll blame me; they're gonna vote me off for sure."_

_"Now Izzy, they won't-"_

_"Oh come on," Izzy's mood went right back to hostile as she stormed over to Owen. "For one thing, quit calling me that! It's not! My! Name anymore!"_

_"Erk! Yes, E-Scope!"_

_"And second, do you honestly think they'll vote for anyone else?" Izzy was pacing back and forth now. "Who? Trent? He's our leader! Justin, the extremely hot hunk? Beth, the sweetest girl to walk Canada?_

_"Or how about Lindsay? Yeah, I can see them voting off Lindsay, Owen! So long as her double-D boobs are bouncing and misbehaving, none of you guys are gonna even think of doing it."_

_"Whoa, Izzy..."_

_She glared at him at being called the wrong name again. "What? You think I haven't noticed the way you stare at her?"_

_"But... but... her boobs were bouncing and misbehaving!"_

_Izzy groaned and sat down on a prop rock, staring down at the ground. "Owen, this is it for me."_

_"Izzy-"_

_"E-Scope," she said, her voice cracking. "Owen, I know when people have had enough of me, okay? I know when I've annoyed people to their limit, despite not trying to."_

_"You do? How?"_

_This was not the best of questions to ask, but Izzy gave him a pass on it because she knew he was trying to be nice in listening. "It's... personal, Owen."_

_"Oh."_

_There was silence between the two, and Owen asked something he truly regretted the moment it fell out of his mouth. "Does this mean we're breaking up?"_

_Izzy looked over at her, her eyes heavy with emotion. "What makes you think that?"_

_"Well, you are talking like it's over."_

_"I meant the contest, Owen!"_

_"Oh... whoops."_

_"Owen...," she repeated, then sighed. "I... I really should be fair to you, though we cannot really broke up since we really never started going out."_

_"I thought we were?"_

_"We made out during TDI, broke up when you pushed me at the serial killer, and were on good terms at the end; but we didn't even search for the million dollar chest together._

_"E-Scope's gonna just weigh you down."_

_"Izzy, that's not true!"_

_"Yes, it is, Owen," she said as she stood up and turned towards him. "You deserve that million dollars, and if you keep associating yourself with E-Scope, then... then..."_

_She took a deep, shuddering breath, recalling some painful memories. "Then people will strike at you. And E-Scope doesn't want the empire to strike back, she wants the Jedi to return."_

_Owen nodded as tears formed up in the large guy's eyes. "But can Izzy... I mean E-Scope... be my friend still?"_

_She smiled. "Of course," she said as she hugged him. "Owen will always be E-Scope's friend, no matter how smelly he is or how doomed she is."_

_"Will you cheer for me if I make it to the finals?"_

_"You know I will!"_

_"Can we still make out?"_

_"Don't push it."_

_"Right, sorry!"_

_Izzy hugged him again, enjoying his lovable girth. She nuzzled him once, then stepped back. "Owen, you'll go far. Maybe you should go after Lindsay, see if she'll let you squeeze her fun bags."_

_"Her what?"_

_"Her boobs, Owen."_

_"Oh! Oh, great key lime pie," he declared as he blushed, "would she really let me?"_

_"Only one way to find out," Izzy said, punching his arm playfully. "Get her under the right conditions, then ask her if you can give her girls a fluffing!"_

_"Say what?"_

_Izzy smacked her forehead. "Squeeze her boobs, Owen! Focus, focus!"_

_"Right, sorry E-Scope! But what are the right conditions?"_

_"E-Scope doesn't know, Owen has to find them! But I'll be rooting for you," she said with a wink._

* * *

"I really didn't need to hear some of that," Courtney said, disgusted.

"You told him to go fluff my girlfriend's girls?" Tyler shouted at the redhead. "Izzy, that is so not coo-"

"E-Scope," Izzy interrupted him. "And yes, I thought it was over between you two!"

"It is not!"

"She cannot even remember your name half the time," Noah sneered. "And she's drooling more than a Saint Bernard over Justin."

"You were only dating her because her bust size was larger than her IQ," Eva added, chuckling to herself.

Tyler kicked the table he was sitting at, knocking it over. "I don't have to stand here and listen to you bastards," he said before heading over to the hotel, limping slightly.

"Whoa," Geoff commented as he watched his former fellow Bass leave, "that was harsh."

"Well, it wasn't undeserving," Bridgette added, glaring at Noah and Eva. "What you guys was completely uncalled for!"

"Oh shut up, blondie," Eva replied.

Bridgette stammered to reply, wondering if risking the wrath of Eva was worth getting in another reply. She was cut off by a whimpering voice coming from someone approaching the pool.

"Guys, can you untie me noo', eh?"

It was Ezekiel, and he looked rather uncomfortable. This could be because he was walking with his back almost parallel to the ground, but also because he had ropes binding him to a wooden chair. The only reason he was moving was because he could manage to tilt the chair and waddle on his feet.

Izzy looked around and burst out laughing. "That's awesome," she declared, watching Ezekiel. "I'd love to learn how to walk like that!"

The others were all snickering and giggling, even Eva was growing a smirk on her normally unsmiling face. Ezekiel sighed in exasperation, struggling to stay on his feet.

"Please, guys?" he asked again. "This is really uncomfortable, eh. I... really have to pee."

"Should have thought of that before you insulted girls again, you creep," Eva said matter-of-factly, sipping her drink.

"What are you talking a'boot?"

"Forget so soon? I was told that you were saying how the staff should consist of more women, because cleaning is what we're meant to do."

The girls all glared at Ezekiel, while he stared flabbergasted at the most glaring of them all.

"I never said that," he protested.

"Like hell I'll believe your word."

"But I never said that, eh!"

"Maybe we should hold a trial," Izzy suggested. "But who is impartial enough to be judge?"

"I am," Eva said. "He's guilty."

"Awww, sorry, Ezekiel," Izzy said, looking sympathetically at the prairie boy. "I guess since I was your lawyer during the trial, you owe me payment now."

"Can I just please get untied, eh?"

"I wouldn't touch you with a ten-foot pole, you sexist," Courtney grumbled.

"Forget the ten-foot pole, just... whoa!"

Ezekiel lost his balance and fell forward. With no way to catch himself, his head was what stopped his fall. "Owtch...," he whimpered.

Izzy giggled. "That was kind of funny to watch, Zeke!"

"Oh, my head..."

"Serves you right," Eva replied.

"Hear hear," Courtney added, lifting her glass in the head.

"I'm bleeding, eh," Ezekiel moaned as he rolled onto his side. Blood was coming from the scrape on his forehead, forming an unsteady line across.

Noah noted this, and turned to Eva. "You know, he actually didn't say that sexist thing."

"What?" Eva shouted, clearly startled. "But you told me he did!"

"Well, I noticed you were in a bad mood, and I knew the best way for you to let your anger out is to pick on him, so I gave you an excuse."

There was silence, everyone wondering if Noah was going to spend his last living day on Earth because of his actions. Eva stared at him, and then that wicked smirk of hers returned.

"That was rather thoughtful of you," she said, slapping his shoulder.

"Yeah well," Noah said as he rubbed his now-sore shoulder, "either him or me, I know who I'd rather you be mad at."

Cody cleared his throat. "If Ezekiel's innocent, can we untie him now?"

"Naw, leave him there," Courtney suggested. "No rush."

"But he has a head injury!"

"He has nothing to injure up there."

"I resent that, eh," Ezekiel shouted, his voice cracking from pain and discomfort.

"C'mon, let's untie him," Izzy said, getting up and walking over to the bound prairie boy. "I hate bondage, let us not support it."

The ground shook as Eva stood up and stomped her foot at Izzy. "Back away from him, Izzy," she snarled.

"E-Sco-"

"Shut the hell up. I really don't want to hear anything about that, _you_ cost Noah and I the chance at the next season," the fitness buff snarled. She marched over to Izzy, and the redhead crossed her arms in defiance.

"It's not fault you didn't run after the case too. What, were you too busy basking in the glow of throwing fish on Justin? That's kind of like my cousin Adam, a fish monger, so proud that he can toss fish; one day, he tried to catch a swordfish, would up with stitches in his palm and stomach-"

"SHUT UP," Eva roared. Izzy clapped her hands over her ears, and stared wide-eyed at Eva. "If you say one more word, I'll rip all your red hair out."

Izzy whimpered and her hands flew to her head.

"Leave her alone, eh," Ezekiel said from the ground.

"What was that, Home School?!" Eva shouted, walking by Izzy and standing over him threateningly.

"You heard me, Eva."

"I guess I did," she replied, then kicked him in the stomach. As he coughed, the wind knocked out of him, she quickly followed up with a kick to the chest.

"Eva, stop it," Izzy shrieked. She tackled the fitness buff from behind, but was easily shrugged off; as the redhead hit the ground, she cursed that she didn't use more tactical attack approach.

"I've had it with you," Eva bellowed, pointing at Ezekiel and then at Izzy, "and her! I should have been in this contest! I'm sitting around doing nothing, when I should be kicking some ass like I signed up for!"

She grabbed the chair Ezekiel was tied to and lifted him up over her head. "If I cannot kick ass on the show, might as well kick yours!"

Drop-kicking the boy in the chair, he landed in the pool and sank like a rock. The fitness buff dusted her hands, and then let out a sigh of relief.

"That felt really good," she said, smiling again.

Izzy stared for a few seconds, then she said, "Um, are you going to go get him?"

"Yuck, why?"

"Because unless he's Houdini, or me since I am distantly related to him, I don't think he's going to escape that!!"

The redhead dove into the pool and swam down. She saw Ezekiel had sank to the bottom of the deep end, and was struggling and thrashing in his bonds. It did him no good, and his eyes were terror.

"_I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die,_" he was thinking hysterically. "_I'm gonna die doo'n here, I doo'nt wanna die!_"

He saw Izzy coming for him, her red hair flowing behind her. She grabbed the bonds on his chair and started to untie him. The knots were very tight, since they had been done by Eva.

Ezekiel felt his lungs burning, his body trying to force him to take a breath. He let out a strained cry, looking desperately at Izzy. He flexed his hands and kicked his feet, nodding his head up to the surface. The crazy girl, who had the end of a rope clenched in her teeth, saw his struggling and took the hint.

Grabbing the back of his chair, she kicked off the bottom of the pool floor. Kicking as hard as she could, she only succeeded in bringing him up a couple feet before the weight was too much. He fell back down on the pool floor, the impact forcing him to take in a breath.

Wincing, he felt his lungs fill with water. His body started to shake as he frantically struggled, but felt his strength sapping from him. Vision fading, he didn't even notice when two people came swimming towards him to help Izzy.

He could see the lights coming up to meet him. Conscious fading, he prayed that his mom and dad would know that he loved them more than anything after he died...

Unaware that he was now on land, Izzy was pushing on his chest. When she went to his mouth to perform CPR, he coughed up water into her face.

"Hey, if you don't want me to kiss you," Izzy said, smiling at him as water dripped from her face, "just say so."

Ezekiel gasped and lay there, taking in deep breaths of sweet, cool, life-giving air. He lay there, wheezing.

"Eva, you went too far," Bridgette, who had been kneeling next to him, shouted as she stood up. "You could have _killed_ him!"

"So now you're worried about that sexist twerp?" Eva asked from the other side of the pool.

"Dude, not cool," Geoff, also at Ezekiel's side, remarked. "C'mon, Eva, we're all mad that we didn't get on the show, but lighten up just a little, eh!"

Eva snorted and stormed towards the hotel. Izzy pointed at her back, then pretended to take an invisible arrow from an invisible quiver, notching it with an invisible bow. The crazy girl would have let the pretend arrow fly, but Ezekiel moaned in-between his wheezing.

"Maybe we should help the dude back to his room," Geoff suggested. "Let him sleep this off, that couldn't have been a fun ride."

"Yeah," said Bridgette.

"I'll carry him," Izzy said, waving his hand. "I once carried a two-hundred pound man out of a building once, and he was trying to fight me since he wanted my table at that restaurant."

"Well, Ezekiel might fight you, since he doesn't think women are tough enough," Bridgette said, quirking an eyebrow at the exhausted prairie boy.

But when Izzy lifted up Ezekiel like a groom would carry his bride, he wrapped his arms around her neck and leaned his head against her shoulder.

"Ezekiel love E-Scope so much right noo'," he muttered, his eyes fluttering as he drifted in and out of sleep.

"Sweet of you to say that, dear," Izzy said, giving him a little peck on the cheek. "But I wasn't the one who saved you, I have to give Geoff and Bridgette credit for that.

"But hey, if I retell the story, can I say I lifted you out by myself?"

"I doo'nt mind at all."

Izzy giggled, and said, "You're nice, Zeke."

Bridgette and Geoff watched her carry him off, and they exchanged glances. "Wow. You'd almost think they're dating, huh?" Geoff asked.

She just sighed and leaned against her boyfriend. "You think this is going how it's gonna be for the rest of the show?"

"What do you mean, babe?"

"So many people here are really cranky, like Eva," she said. "They're so mad they didn't get in the show, and they're practically at each other's throats."

"Maybe after they watch the others suffer, they'll cool down."

"I don't know, Geoff. I mean, _I'm_ still a little mad."

"You, Bridgette?" He gaped at her. "I didn't think you were capable of holding a grudge."

"I didn't think so either," she said, sighing.

"Want to talk about it?"

"No, not right now, sweetheart. I think we've had enough drama today."

* * *

Izzy laid Ezekiel on his bed. The redhead got some band-aids and applied them to his small head injury. She was about to leave when he heard him call out.

"I'm soo'ry you were voted off, E-Scope."

"That's E-Sco...," she started to snap at him, then stopped. "Oh wow. You're calling me by my name."

"That's what you want, eh. I watched the show."

"Thank you very much! Well, I better be going, you do need to go pee, if I recall."

His face went red, and he looked away. "Um... I doo'nt need to anymoo'r, eh. When I was drowning in the pool..."

Izzy blinked, and he waited for her to grimace in disgust. Instead, she shrugged and said, "No harm, the pool is chlorinated."

She smiled and sat down on his bed. "You know, you're the first person to call me E-Scope. Not even Owen called me E-Scope."

"Soo'ry to hear that, but he's not a bad guy; you two do make a nice couple, eh."

"We broke up."

She retold the story about her argument with Owen, adding a little more drama this time with Izzy being harassed by Justin. Ezekiel listened as much as he could, trying to stay awake.

"It seems you're still friends, so it's okay," he said. "Seemed kind of sudden, eh."

"Well, we did have a few arguments and such beforehand," Izzy admitted. "Didn't feel like sharing it in front of meanies like Courtney and Eva.

"You see, like after the first challenge, Owen accused me of cheating on him with the giant monster. Then we argued after that alien contest."

She sighed, brushing one of her red curls behind her ear, looking sad. "I told him he really needs to work on his health. I mean, he eats stuff not good for him, he has gas all the time, and he doesn't shower that much."

The redhead wrinkled her nose, an adorable action to the zonked Ezekiel. "You want to know how icky it is to hug a big guy who doesn't shower often and really, really reeks?"

"A little. He wedged me under his arm after he won the first season, eh."

"Oh, I wasn't aware. He was sitting on me at first, and that was _really_ unpleasant since he had that laxative trip."

Ezekiel made a little gagging sound, then coughed.

"So, yeah, I told him that he needed to start showering at the least. He responded by saying how it was a good smell, and lifted his arm to display his armpit smell at him."

Izzy shuddered. "I nearly missed the Award Ceremony, but luckily, Harold was around to revive me with smelling salts. Kind of like the one time I peeked in my brother's gym clothes bag, I woke up a couple days later with a bitter taste in my mouth for a few days afterwards."

She then looked morbidly sad. Sighing, she wrung her hands and looked away from Ezekiel. "Um... never mind."

"Something wrong, eh?"

"No, nothing at all," she replied, her voice low. "Um, Ezekiel, you gonna be okay?"

"I will be, thanks to you, E-Scope."

Ezekiel reached out and patted her hand, and she smirked at him. "So that means Mr. Misogynistic isn't better than women anymore?"

He sighed. "You knoo', I haven't...," then he yawned.

The prairie boy breathed in and out a couple times, and Izzy realized he had fallen asleep. She sighed; she was really liking talking to Ezekiel because he was actually listening to her.

"Maybe next time, Zeke."

* * *

**(Might be fair to warn you now, contents are maturing.)**

Izzy stayed up to two AM, thriving on a couple energy drinks and feeling pumped. She had a large jar of honey, a plan, and the attitude to go through with what she was planning.

"No one drags Izzy like a dog and throws her into a car, not again," she snarled to herself. "How dare they! They shall pay, Izzy will get her revenge!"

She had waited in the hotel lobby, waiting for everyone to go to bed. Bridgette and Geoff had come in, her looking depressed and him confused. Cody came in with his arms around Katie and Sadie's shoulders, the three of them giggling and joking as if they were entering a grand party rather than a hotel.

Courtney and Noah were the only ones to notice Izzy, but barely gave her any more than a nod in her direction. Fine by her, all she cared about was getting her revenge on those two guards.

It had taken a lot of phone calls and some excellent voice acting, but she eventually found out that staff of TDA were staying in a hotel very near the cast's. Trying to find something that would be useful for revenge (she wanted something more painful, but hotels didn't have a lot of torturous items), so she wound up with a large jar of honey from the kitchen.

"_I could barely understand those people, they were speaking all kinds of languages_," she thought to herself as she began tying together blankets and towels. "_They're the same people from last season's resort, great cooks but lousy English speakers._

_"Wonder how they exchange recipes if they don't speak the same language down there. When there is a fire, are there going to be six different versions of fire being yelled? That's kind of funny to think of, I should start a small one in there for fun._"

Once she had tied enough of the cloths together, she tied it to the bed and began to rappel down the side of the building. Sure, she could have simply headed out the front door, but where would the fun in that be? This was the E-Scope way to do a secret mission, like a spy the whole way!

She climbed down onto the awning. Spreading herself out evenly over the tiles, she frowned at the light that shone directly on her. Reaching behind it, she yanked the cord out and covered herself in darkness.

"_Perfect,_" she thought, now grinning victoriously. "_Now I shall just leap for the pool wall, leap over the side, and then I'll_-"

Her well-planned train of thought was cut off when she heard splashing in the pool. Blinking in confusion, she dared to crawl towards the end of the awning, still hidden in shadow, and looked directly in.

Eva and Noah were in the shallow end of the pool, in their bathing suits, kissing fervently and moaning. They were both groping each other, the wildest petting Izzy had even seen; and she had seen Bridgette and Geoff go at it.

Izzy almost cried out in her surprise. Her two teammates in her search for the briefcase! Noah, the most cynical and arrogant know-it-all she knew! Eva, the most temperamental and stubborn girl with the shortest fuse! In the pool making out! At two AM!

The two continued to kiss, gripping each other as if their lives depended on it. Izzy had never seen this kind of wrestling when a couple was making out, but she chalked it up that Eva was one of the make outers.

As if her thoughts had triggered it, Eva wrapped her arms around Noah and squeezed. The bear hug made Noah squirm, and he strained out, "Erk, Eva... that's a bit much."

"Sorry," she said, loosening her grip. He smiled in thanks, then began to kiss her neck. She growled, almost a purr, leaning her head back to give Noah more room.

Izzy's jaw nearly unhinged in her startle over Eva's purring. What she wouldn't give for a video camera right about now!

"Oh Noah," she moaned, stroking his arms. "You're really... nnngh... good at this! Am I the first girl you've done this with?"

"Yes."

"Oh come on, you got a pretty bookworm at home who you neck with after study hours?" Izzy was straining to hear, they were speaking quietly.

"When a boy is left alone by his family and only the internet around to answer his questions, he learns a few things."

Eva grinned as he continued, her hot and heavy breath on his ear. Her right hand dipped underwater, disappearing from Izzy's line of sight. She could still see the ravenhair's shoulder move, and it looked like it was heading towards...

Izzy almost dropped her jar of honey when Noah let out a shuddering gasp. Squinting at Eva, he started to pant. "How... forward," he moaned.

She continued to grin at him, and her shoulder moved faster. Izzy boggled as Noah started to moan. The know-it-all ground his teeth, then he slipped a finger under her bathing suit's right strap.

"Two can play at that game," he said, his voice low and breathy; Izzy could barely make out what they were saying now.

Eva's shoulder stopped its massaging motion as Noah started to pull the strap off Eva's shoulder. The ravenhair girl was breathing as hard as he was, with a slight whimper in hers; her face was very red.

Izzy really wanted that video camera now! Eva whimpering? And blushing? This would be better than the time she discovered Bigfoot (and she didn't have a camera then either).

Noah was taking his sweet time pulling down the strap. He leaned forward and kissed the skin where it once was. Eva shuddered, her breath quickening.

"Permission to approach second base?" he asked, still sounding as sly as ever.

"If you don't hurry this up, I'm gonna break your legs."

"Hmmm, don't want that."

He pulled down the strap all the way, exposing her right breast. Grinning, he marveled it for a couple seconds before lowering his head, licking the top of Eva's mammary.

Izzy bit her finger to keep from crying out. Eva made no such attempts, and let out a pleasured grunt. Her left hand held the back of his head in place, her breath rustling his hair.

It wasn't until Noah dipped his head down towards her nipple that she really cried out. And this wasn't the kind of moan Izzy would expect from Eva in a million years: it was high-pitched and vulnerable. This was getting better than the times she spotted Bigfoot, the Loch Ness, and an alien spaceship, all of them combined!

"Ohhh... guh...," Eva moaned, gripping Noah's head with both her hands now. She arched her back, helping to put all of her nipple into his mouth. Noah helped with this by wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer.

"Firm, just as I thought," he said, slightly muffled. "And yet..."

He flicked at the bud and traced the aerola before giving her breast a playful squeeze. "Still soft."

"R-r-really?" she stammered, her voice as tender as her moans; Izzy had to remind herself it was _Eva_ down there sounding turned on and loving.

"You know I wouldn't lie to you, Iron Woman."

She growled, playfully. "I love it when you call me that. Now get back to sucking, bookworm."

"You gotta find a better nickname for me," he said before doing as she requested.

Izzy really, really wanted to call out, "_Oh, how about Cynical Man? Or Book Stud?_" But she wouldn't miss out on this.

Some would say that Izzy listening and watching in on Noah and Eva would be immoral; however, Izzy was not one of those people. The romance and physical love between the young couple continued, as Noah pulled down the other strap soon enough and left Eva completely topless. He continued to lick and suck on her nipples as she basked in the pleasure; her firm body, tightened after years of training, was hot putty to Noah's lips and hands.

Izzy really didn't know how long this went on, for she didn't have a watch. All she knew was that Eva was moaning and whimpering as Noah made love to her bare chest. Eventually, she started to kiss and lick at his own chest, paying attention to his nipples in return. Her hand went back down towards his groin, and he began to breathe heavy and hiss air through his teeth.

It slowly came to a halt with them kissing, his hands on her naked breasts, and one of her hands still down below. The two lovers were panting hard, both red in the face and moaning.

"Sun will rise in about a couple hours," Noah whispered, barely audible to Izzy.

"Why don't we go up to my room?" Eva asked as she writhed against him. She had the most appealing come-hither look on her face (as least, in Izzy's opinion, as much as Eva could have one).

Noah looked keen on the notion for a few seconds, then he shook his head. "Sorry, Eva, but if we're going to keep this secret, we should keep it quiet too. Something tells me you're a screamer."

"If you mean I can really make _you_ scream, then yes."

"Don't tempt me, Iron Woman."

He gave both of her breasts a kiss, and they started to kiss some more as Noah lifted the straps of her bathing suit back up.

Their making out was more intense than what Izzy had seen of Geoff and Bridgette's, as the unusual couple started to make their way back to the hotel. They kissed and held each other when they exited the pool, when drying themselves off, and exchanged the longest kiss Izzy had seen when they had to part ways for the changing rooms; the sound of their mouths parting was like two wet plungers being pulled apart after sticking them together.

Izzy lay there on the awning for a little while after both of them had gone into the hotel. "_Now that was __something else__,_" she thought to herself as she waited.

"_Too bad I cannot tell anyone, they wouldn't believe me. Shame really, that was more incredulous than the time I saw Elvis in Ontario; and it was nowhere near as hot as the King was._"

* * *

After Izzy had completed her stealth mission, she hurriedly snuck back to her hotel. Though she was delight that the mission was a complete success, her mind was focused entirely on Eva and Noah's affair.

"_I wonder why they're keeping it secret,_" she thought as she climbed up on the awning. "_It's not like Eva to be worried about what other people think. And she could easily intimidate anyone who makes fun of them._

"_Heck, I'd even think twice about teasing her on her love life_," she continued to muse as she climbed up her rope of sheets and towels. "_Love can make us the most angry. Odd that, but hey, that's why it's called crime of passion._"

She continued to think about this after she was safe in her room. Realizing that there was no chance she was going to fall asleep tonight, she decided to take a walk around the hotel.

Izzy was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see the other person rounding the corner to the corridor at the same time as her. Bonking heads, they both fell back on their rear ends.

"Ouch," Izzy remarked, then looked at who she collided with. "Oh, hi, Zeke!"

"E-Scope? What are you doing up so early, eh?"

"I was out on a secret mission. Why are you up?"

"I usually wake up early, since I was raised on a farm, eh. But I'm up early even fur myself, since I was asleep early."

Izzy nodded as she stood up, grabbing his arm and yanking him up on his feet. "Well, what time is it? I haven't noticed yet."

"Five AM, eh."

"Whoa, really?"

"_I left my room at two!_" she thought. "_I probably watched Eva and Noah for two hours and the mission took one hour... or maybe it was the other way around?_"

Ezekiel was scratching the back of his head, looking as if he wanted to ask her something but didn't have the courage worked up yet. Izzy was busy trying to figure out how she had been gone three hours, and thus, the two stood for a couple minutes quietly.

"Um, Izzy?" he finally managed to say.

"Maybe it was an hour and a half-hour each... oh! Yes?"

"You, um, wanna get something to eat at the cafeteria?"

Izzy grinned, cocking her head to the side. "Are you asking me out?"

Ezekiel blanched, turning pink then red in a few seconds. "Um... no. The cafeteria's indoors, eh."

The redhead blinked in confusion, then smiled. And then burst out laughing. Ezekiel chuckled nervously, especially when she fell over backwards and starting kicking her legs in the air. His own laughter stopped when he accidentally saw her green panties down her skirt, and he looked away in embarrassment.

"_That's__ wild, I didn't know they make green panties,_" he thought, though he quickly chastised himself for thinking about that.

"Ezekiel, you really need to learn some slang," she said as she stood up, brushing off her skirt. "But yes, I'd love to get something to eat."

She extended her hand and grinned slyly at him. "I don't know the way, though. Lead me?"

Her teasing was becoming quite a lot for the poor, nervous prairie boy. Trembling nervously, he took her hand. Her heart began to pound, and he felt suddenly very conscious of how hot and sweaty his skin was feeling all over.

Ezekiel was so anxious, he almost didn't notice how sticky her hand was. When she gave him a reassuring squeeze, he hiccuped out a high-strung squeak.

"Oh lighten up, Zeke, I'm just a girl," she said.

"I cannot help it, eh. I... hey, wait. I'm not like that anymoo'r, eh!"

"Hmmm?"

"I doo'nt think guys are better than girls, eh!"

Izzy grinned and squeezed his hand again. "Well, I still get to take my revenge on you. You're gonna have to sit in the cafeteria and listen to me chat! I got lots of interesting stuff to tell someone, and you're my victim!"

So he began to lead her to the cafeteria, wondering what he was getting into, wondering just what was on the crazy girl's mind, and what was on her hand too.

* * *

**End of Part 1.**

* * *

--

--

--

Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter! I'm not going to rush Ezekiel and Izzy, because they are going to be slowly falling in love.

Besides those two, the focus is going to be on the other new couples, Bridgette, Tyler, and well, I don't know. But I guarantee you, all twenty-two campers will have their time in the limelight.

Next up will be Ezekiel and Izzy bonding, it'll be Ezzy! And please people, be critical with your reviews! I want to get this story right! (Though if you want to be nice in your reviews, I'm cool with that too.)

Oh, and the campers currently at Playa des Losers 2 are: **Eva**, **Noah**, **Katie**, **Sadie**, **Tyler**, **Cody**, **Courtney**, **Ezekiel**, **Izzy**, **Bridgette**, and **Geoff**.


	2. Oh, The Stories I Could Tell

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - This chapter isn't as raunchy as the first one, it's more to strength Izzy and Ezekiel's friendship. The amount of raunchiness and sexiness to be included depends on reviews and my new poll's results.

* * *

**Chapter 2** - They're Walking, Yes Indeed

* * *

Izzy could not remember the last time she talked without being interrupted, stared at strangely, and/or the person she was talking to running away.

Ezekiel was the best listener she ever met. For about four hours, she talked to him, told him stories and her ideals and her past. She told him about school, her friends, her pets (some licensed and some not), and many of her adventures.

He sat there, making perfect eye contact, nodding when it was appropriate; not the sad type of nodding she saw in some people who were trying to physically tell her, "Right, whatever, get to the end."

She knew he was listening to, because he asked questions like, "Uncle Colin is the one who doesn't get along with anyone, right," "Didn't the cat react badly to being in the shower," and "Did you eventually get that moose that singled you 'oot?"

Izzy was loving this, and eventually, she had to ask, "How did you get to be such a good listener?"

"Comes from home schooled, eh," he said as he sipped his drink. "When your parents are your teachers for all your life, you learn it's best to listen, because you also live with them, eh."

She giggled. "That makes sense. I wanted to be home schooled at one point during junior high, but..."

Izzy stopped, and the glow in her eye that had stayed during their four-hour, one-sided conversation was suddenly gone. She uncomfortably rubbed her left arm.

"E-Scope? Is something wrong?"

"No, it's nothing," she muttered, looking down at the ground then back up at him. "Just, um, something I don't like talking about."

Ezekiel nodded. "If that's what you'd prefer. How a'boot you finish telling me what you did when you were in that haunted hoo'se?"

Her grin was back, and she immediately began to talk with gusto. She was practically thrashing in her chair as she described the haunting spirit who she described as a "bloody mailman having a seizure."

"He was hoping on one leg at one point as he ordered me to get out, his other leg behind his head. Here, he looked like this..."

Izzy put her right leg behind her head, leaning back in her chair as she bellowed in a deep, wicked, Canadian-accented voice, " 'Get 'oot, get 'oot, or I'll mail your eyeballs back to your hoo'se, eh'!"

Ezekiel laughed, but it was mostly to cover up the fact that he was now desperately trying to look at her green panties. They were now on display right in front of him since Izzy's skirt rode all the way up to her hip from. Blushing, he tried to focus on her green eyes instead.

"You know, I'm getting a little tired of this place," she said as she removed her leg from behind her head. "You want to go for a walk?"

"A walk? To where, eh?"

"Who cares, as long as we go somewhere," she said, clapping happily. "C'mon, Ezekiel, where's your sense of adventure?"

Ezekiel's sense of adventure never had before included wandering around a city he had never been to; however, he found it impossible to say "no" to those bright green eyes and that wild grin.

He shrugged and said, "All right, you can lead the way."

"Oh goody!"

* * *

"And then my lawyer shouted, 'Objection! My client could not operate a chain saw that was _out of gas_,' and the audience was sure startled by that!"

"Have you been in trouble with the law often?"

"Only twice. Well, three times, but that third time was just me being a usual suspect." Ezekiel shrugged and said, "I cannot see you being called 'usual' in any way, eh."

"Really? Thanks, you're really sweet!"

The two were walking down the sidewalk, seeing the sights and buildings. Izzy continued to ramble for most of the trip, then she came to a halt when they saw something rather familiar.

"Wow, there it is."

"Indeed, eh."

"Looks like something you'd see in a dream or a distant memory."

"Well, actually, I've only seen it on the TV, eh."

"Oh that's right."

The two continued to stare at the entrance of the abandoned film lot where TDA was being filmed. Izzy was shaking her head, sighing. Ezekiel studied her face, trying to guess what was on her mind.

"You ever wonder why the film lot was abandoned?" she asked him.

"My guess would be they expanded too far, eh," he said. "Chris is going to be relying on a lot of different movie genres, and if this movie lot has them, they tried to make too many different types of movies, eh."

"Wow, that's not a bad hypothesis," she gushed, beaming at him. "My guess would be that the Giant Monster caused too much property damage and they couldn't get the budget."

"Or maybe he and several key members of the studio got to be like Chris, and demanded too much."

"Ooo, another good guess, Shortie."

"Hey," Ezekiel whined, facing her. He couldn't deny she was half a head taller than him, but he thought 'Shortie' was a bit much.

"Just trying to cut you down a little, Mr. Male Supremist."

This actually hurt Ezekiel more than he thought it would. He walked over to the fence behind them and sunk down against it, his toque almost covering his eyes now.

"Aw c'mon, man up," Izzy said, standing over him. "You cannot be a real man if you let a little girl insult you like that."

"Is everyone going to hammer me on that until the day I die, eh?"

"Pardon, Shortie?"

Ezekiel looked up from under his toque at her. "You really have a way of making me feel bad fast, E-Scope."

"Well gee, I didn't mean to. You aren't used to teasing, are you?" She leaned over him, her hands on her knees. "C'mon Shortie, lighten up. I'm not even trying to be that mean."

"It's just that everyone treats me like that and...," he sighed and scratched the back of his neck, "... it's just really getting me doo'n, eh."

Izzy cocked her head to the side, the red curls on both sides of her head bouncing playfully. He didn't really notice them beforehand, and he thought that made her face even cuter than normal.

Ezekiel continued to stare up at her, his toque and brunet bangs almost covering his eyes emo-style. She thought it looked adorable on him, making her ruffle his toque to mess up his brown mullet.

So she did. He swatted at her hands, and this only encouraged her to do it more. Finally, he stopped swinging at her hands and let her fool around. She stopped shortly after he did.

"C'mon, Ezekiel, what's bothering you?"

"It's... kind of pathetic, eh."

"Nah, pathetic is like my friend Crystal's ex-boyfriend, who insisted that he wasn't cheating on by kissing another girl, because he mentally insisted it was over between them. That's pathetic, and I let him know that when I gave him a swirly."

"What's that, eh?"

"Oh, that's when you stick someone's head in the toilet and then flush it."

Ezekiel blanched. "After it's bin used?!"

"Ewww, no! Well, _I_ don't do that, cannot speak for everyone else. Now c'mon, what's bothering you?"

He sighed and said, "All the other guys and girls in the shoo' hate me, eh."

"They cannot all hate you!"

"The girls glare at me whenever I walk by, even if I doo'nt say anything or even look at them. And the guys doo'nt talk to me, they doo'nt like associating themselves with me, eh."

"Have you tried talking to them?"

"Well, I tried talking to Bridgette during TDI, but she'd give me this weird look whenever I came by. And Beth and Lindsay... I tried talking to them during the hunt for the million dollar briefcase, but they ignored me.

"And when I tried talking to Tyler, he told me that some of the girls had made it clear that if I was seen, um what's it called, 'hanging 'oot' with them, the girls wouldn't talk to them, eh."

Izzy frowned. "I don't remember getting that memo."

"Yeah well, it's just been one long, lonely trip for me, eh," Ezekiel said, sighing. "No one to talk to, no one to spend time with... but I hate complaining and sounding soo'ry fur myself, eh." He shrugged and crossed his arms. "Anyway, I do have someone I can talk to now, eh."

"Really? Who?"

Ezekiel looked up at her and smirked. "Hey, where have you bin the past five hours, eh?"

"Oh! Me? That's right," she said, then giggled. "But I've been doing all the talking."

"I didn't want to interrupt you, you seem like you have a lot to say. Kind of like my mom when she really has a story to tell when she comes in from too'n, eh."

Izzy giggled some more and sat down next to Ezekiel. "Well, Shortie, I've been a bit selfish and hogging the conversation's lead. Why don't I give the reins to you?"

Ezekiel shrugged. "Not much to say, eh. All of my stories come from home."

"Now don't give me that! Everyone can have fun at home, even if you're not lighting anything on fire!"

The prairie boy chuckled, then thought about it. "I actually cannot think of anything right now, eh."

"Awwwwww."

Ezekiel was distracted when he looked over at the abandoned movie lot, and quirked an eyebrow. "Ever think of sneaking back in, E-Scope?"

"Now you're talking, there's the adventurous Ezekiel I knew had to lurk under that blue toque! But let's save that for another day! There's some other place I actually wanted to go..."

* * *

"What's this hotel got to do with anything, E-Scope?"

"I just wanted to see the lobby," she said, avoiding eye contact and grinning mischievously. "I've... heard a lot of great things about the lobby about this hotel."

Ezekiel found this to be particularly unusual, but he really didn't know anything about the outside world. Maybe this hotel chain was spectacular. So he followed her in.

The hotel lobby was quite large, filled with fake plants, framed photographs, and paintings. Ezekiel found it to be really neat, he had never been in any other hotels except for the ones at both Playa des Losers.

Izzy, however, didn't seem interested in the lobby that had brought them there. She was even standing behind Ezekiel, humming patiently.

"Something wrong, E-Scope?" he asked her.

"Nope, just waiting."

"What fur, eh?"

"Oh, nothing important."

"Now, E-Scope-"

"WHERE THE HELL IS THE MANAGER?!!"

Ezekiel leapt a couple feet in the air when the booming voice rang throughout the lobby. When his feet were back on the ground, he felt Izzy shrink up behind him.

Walking into the lobby were two of the biggest, stickiest messes Ezekiel had ever seen shamble on two legs. The two men, who looked almost completely identical, were dripping with a thick, yellowish-brown syrup. They were leaving sticky footprints every time they strained to lift their feet off the ground.

"Manager," the humanoid-like blobs were shouting. They pounded on the main desk, leaving fist prints of the substance. The desk clerk was not there, she had fled upon seeing these two while shouting, "La Gota! Es la Gota!" **[1]**

"What the heck?" was all Ezekiel could say. Izzy was peeking over her shoulder, and her suppressed laughter was tickling his neck.

A man in his late forties eventually came out to talk to the two men. "Good Lord," were his first words, "what happened to you gentlemen?"

"What happened to us happened in our rooms," one of the two men shouted. "We woke up covered head to toe in this... this... goo!"

"I think it's honey," the other syrupy man said.

"How did this happen?" the manager asked, flabbergasted.

"That's what _we_ want to know!!"

Izzy was barely able to contain her laughter. She was gripping Ezekiel's shoulders tightly as she shook.

"And this honey wasn't just on us," the first gooey man shouted. "It was in our clothing drawers, all of them! It was in on the soap in our sink! The towels, the doorknobs, the window, in our shoes, everywhere! Freaking everywhere!"

The responsible one was wrapping her arms around Ezekiel's waist, pulling him close as she tried very hard not to cackle. Her breasts were pushed against his back, and his face was turning red, almost as red as the two very angry, very sticky men at the information desk.

"But... who could have done this?" the manager asked. "Was your room locked?"

"Of course it was locked, damn it! You think of us as idiots?!"

"No, no of course not, señor!"

"Look buddy, we work for Chris Maclean of Total Drama Action fame! Do you know what we do for a living?"

"N-no."

"We are bouncers! Yesterday, we threw this wild cat into a car, a girl that's wanted by the RCMP! And if we can manhandle a girl like that-"

"Then let's see you do it when covered in honey, bitches," Izzy shouted, popping up from behind Ezekiel.

All heads swung over to look at the redhead, and the two bouncers clenched their fists (making comical squishing sounds).

"Haha, that'll teach you to mess with E-Scope, you bastards," she continued to shout. Then she grabbed Ezekiel's wrist, shouted, "Run, Zeke," and pulled him from the lobby.

"Get that little bi-"

The first bouncer shouted, but trying to start running in a shoe filled and covered with honey was too sudden, and he fell down on the ground, making a sticky, hilarious-sounding 'splat'. His look alike friend tripped over him, falling down right on him.

It took five staff members of the hotel to pull the two apart.

* * *

Once Izzy and Ezekiel were a safe enough distance, she burst out laughing and fell on her knees. Grabbing a nearby chain-link fence, she cackled and nearly fell down completely.

"Did you see," she tried to say in-between cackles, "the look on their faces? It was perfect! Honey-coated perfectness!"

Ezekiel, wide-eyed, sank down on the pavement, heaving for air. He was not used to jogging, having lived indoors most of his life. He stared at Izzy, watching her writhe in her mirth.

"Oh, that was too much," she howled. "I wish we could stick around to see them try to clean up! ... HA! 'Stick' around!"

She fell on her back, pounding the ground as she roared with laughter. Ezekiel felt himself laughing slightly too, especially when he remembered the sound of the two hitting the ground during their retreat: the sticky plop was a sound effect suited for cartoons.

"E-Scope," he said between his chuckles, "how did you do that, eh?"

"Through the window! Oh man, I completely used up all the honey I brought too! I cannot believe I didn't wake them, but they were such lunkheads, I could have played piano in there and not have waken them!"

She leaned back and stared up at the sky, sighing happily. "My revenge is now complete. No one treats E-Scope like that, no one throws her in a car like that ever again."

" 'A'geen'?"

"Yeah. It's... well, it's a long story."

"Tell me?"

"Um, maybe another time, it's not a good story."

Her smile was wavering, and Ezekiel hated to see it go. He didn't even understand why, shouldn't he be furious at her? She dragged him to this hotel, and risked two angry, big and muscular men chasing him to see the end result of her prank. Still, he couldn't deny how much fun it had been when looking back.

"Hey, E-Scope, that does remind me of a story back home, eh."

Her face immediately brightened up. "Ooo! Tell me! Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

* * *

"Mom never lets me forget a'boot that time, eh," he told her. "She brings it up every time someone mentions a tree. She always says, 'That reminds me of the time you climbed way up high in that tree, and then called 'oot to us, saying you couldn't get doo'n'."

Izzy cackled. She slapped him on the back as they continued to walk. "She sounds like she really wants to rub it in that you gave her a big scare!"

"Yes, I think so, eh."

The two were walking again, wandering around the city aimlessly as Ezekiel shared stories from home. Though his were nowhere near as exciting or incredible as Izzy's, she was enjoying them all the same.

"So, Zeke, why did you join this show anyway?"

"Doctor's orders."

"What? Were you not getting enough of a dosage of reality TV?" Izzy asked, looking dubious. "How many shows you been on, prairie boy?"

"This is the first, eh! What I meant was, my doctor recommended I get 'oot moo'r, since I have Vitamin D deficiency."

"Whoa, how'd you get that?"

"By not getting 'oot enough, apparently. I hate being outdoors."

"Aww, that's no way to live, Zeke boy," she said as she elbowed him. "Outdoors are where the most fun and exciting things can happen!"

He shrugged. "Well, I still doo'nt see the thrill. I mean, look at TDI. Cody got mauled by a bear, Bridgette got sprayed by skunks, you got bit by a snake-"

"No, he was kissing me. Couldn't help that those big ol' fangs got in the way," Izzy corrected him. "But I think that'll be my mission from now on, Zeke."

"What, to get kissed by a snake?"

They both laughed, then she said, "No, E-Scope gonna make sure you get out more often!" Ezekiel didn't look so thrilled by this, and she elbowed him some more. "You're not getting out of this, my Zeke!"

"Now c'mon, I really doo'nt need to get... wait, what did you call me?"

"Zeke?"

"No, you called me, 'my Zeke'."

"That's 'cuz you're my Zeke from now on," she said, grinning at him. "I'm gonna help cure your misogynistic, indoor ways."

"I'm not misogynistic, eh," Ezekiel grumbled, looking away from her.

"Now c'mon, my Zeke. The first step to solving a problem is to admit you have a problem."

"But I'm not, eh!"

"You're not helping the healing process, Zeke."

He stopped walking and rubbed his forehead. "E-Scope, I'm not sexist, eh."

"You were the one who said guys were stronger and smarter than girls."

"That was at the beginning of TDI, nine weeks ago," Ezekiel cried out, throwing his hands in the air. "It's bin a'boot two months! Why does everyone think I haven't changed?"

Izzy looked at him, not changing her dubious expression. "Well, have you?" she asked simply.

"Yes! I doo'nt think guys are superior, eh! I mean, look at the girls in this contest: Eva, Gwen, Leshawna, and you! You all proved to be way tougher than the guys I've met, eh!"

Izzy beamed at him. "You really believe that?"

"Why would I say it if I didn't mean it, eh?"

"Could be an elaborate lie."

Ezekiel moaned and covered his face. He peeked at her between his fingers and muttered, "What do I have to do to prove to you I'm not a creep anymoo'r?"

"Well... oh!"

Izzy looked at the building they had stopped in front of. Ezekiel noted it too, perplexed at the strange store.

"An 'Ay'dult Movie Store'?" he read the sign in the door. "What makes them ay'dult? They all rated R?"

"Something like that. Come on, this'll be another adventurer!"

She grabbed his wrist and dragged him in. A small bell rang to indicate their presence, and the redhead girl blurted out, "Hi, we're looking for good smut!"

Izzy immediately began to peruse the DVDs, while Ezekiel watched in confusion. He eventually picked up a DVD and read the title.

" 'Girls Gone Absolutely Mental'," he read aloud. "Never heard of this one, eh. What's it a'boot?"

He turned around and began to read the description. His eyes widened and let out a startled cry, shoving it back on the shelf. He picked up several more movies, noticing the dirty pictures on the cover and back, and shoving all of them back on the shelf as if they had the plague.

"E-Scope," he cried out, "the movies here are not normal, eh!"

"Of course not, you goof, they're porn!"

Porn? He had heard of it a few times from his mom and dad. They had warned him of filthy things on the internet, weird and bizarre things that people found sexually satisfying, and were not only sinful, but were downright nauseating.

That sure looked like what he was surrounded by. Noticing many different types of covers, he started to feel sick. "How many of God's laws," he whimpered to himself, "have bin violated in the course of all these being filmed, eh?"

"Probably each of the seven deadly sins," Izzy answered cheerfully. "But here, Zeke. Take a look at this and tell me what you think."

She held up a copy of a DVD with a woman who was far more endowed than human beings were meant to be. Ezekiel was sure that the picture was taken moments before her spine snapped.

"... Anatomically impossible, eh."

"Ah, good call. But what do you think about the woman's decision to be in porn?"

"Well... disgraceful comes first to mind."

"Hmmm. But what about the men involved?"

"Um, what?"

"Porn needs men most of the time, my Zeke. Who do think the women have sex with on camera?"

Ezekiel's already wide eyes somehow got wider, and his jaw dropped. "They allowed themselves to be filmed having sex?!"

"Yep. Boy, you have been raised in a sheltered life, haven't you?"

"I think I prefer it," he replied, covering his face with one hand. "It's so awful to think a'boot! How could anyone lower themselves to do it in front of other people? In front of a camera?"

"See Ezekiel, this is what sexists like the most."

He stared at her as the redhead nodded wisdomicly. "You see, sexist men see as nothing more than a sexual object. Not a human being, an object. They make stuff like this because they don't think women are good for anything else."

"I never...," Ezekiel cried out, putting his hands over his heart, "_ever_ thought that a'boot women, eh!"

"Oh, I believe you when you say that, especially since you're acting like a pilgrim in an unholy land," she said, giggling. "But see here, this is the kind of sexism girls in public high school deal with. Guys who want to take them in the back seat of their car, and do what this blond bimbo gets done to her in this movie."

Ezekiel gagged as bile rose up his throat. "E-Scope, please..."

"Okay, sorry. But look, I'm just trying to help you."

"But why are you showing me this? My idea of why guys were superior was just that they're athletes more so, eh!"

Izzy raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well, isn't that true?" he asked. "Doo'nt guys try 'oot for sports moo'r than girls where you go to school? Doo'nt guys do more physical stuff than girls do?" She continued to stare at him.

"I mean, that's what girls do in most of the shows I watched at home, based off of real teens, and..."

He stopped talking when he saw Izzy was continuing to stare at him. Ezekiel swallowed nervously and pulled his toque down over his eyes.

"If you want to hit me, go ahead, eh."

"Ezekiel, I'm not gonna hit you, I could really hurt you. I got a right hand cross that is equal to Bruce Lee; learned it from studying his movies, I can break a concrete block with it."

She reached over and lifted up his toque from his eyes. "It's true, girls do a lot more nonphysical stuff. But there are lots and lots of girls who like sports, like Eva and Bridgette. And the one thing they hate is being told that boys are better than them."

Ezekiel sighed and stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets. "Is that why they hate me so much, eh?"

"Pretty much."

"But I didn't mean to insult them when I said that, eh!"

"They didn't know that. They couldn't have known you didn't know any better. Personally, I think they overreacted, especially Katie, Sadie, and Courtney weren't exactly Olympic material. I am, I think I'll try out for the 2012 Olympics."

Izzy shrugged, then put the DVDs back onto the shelf. "So you see, Ezekiel, girls get worried around boys who say anything that puts down our gender."

Ezekiel sighed. "I wish I had knoo'n this sooner."

"Well now you know. And knowing is half the battle! I learned that phrase from a soldier, really nice guy, showed me how to use a combat knife, and the three fastest ways to kill an enemy soldier-"

"Do you two need some help?"

Ezekiel and Izzy looked around to see a young woman standing nearby them. Her appearance startled the prairie boy, because he had never seen a woman like this, not even on TV. She was a combination of Gwen, Lindsay, and Duncan: Gwen's gothic clothing and dyed hair, Lindsay's breast size and exposed cleavage, and Duncan's facial and ear piercings.

"You two are eighteen, right?" the woman asked them.

"Of course, don't I look eighteen?" Izzy shot back, thumping her chest. "I can legally drive and shoot a gun too, wanna see me do both at the same time?"

"No thanks, hon," the gothic woman replied, a little weirded out.

"It's really something, I knocked down several stop signs doing that," Izzy said, rubbing her hands together. "So much fun!"

"My, you're feisty," the gothic woman replied. "Anything I can do for you young couple now?"

Ezekiel blinked. " 'Couple'?" he asked.

"Well, we were just leaving," Izzy said, shrugging. "You guys don't have as big of yuri selection than we wanted."

The gothic woman raised a pierced eyebrow, then she looked Izzy up and down. It was the same kind of look that Ezekiel would expect from a guy with no class to give a girl; he'd seen that kind of look on a TV show, but from a guy who was always a creep, not a woman giving it to another woman.

"Well hon," the gothic woman said, thrusting out her chest and hips a little at Izzy, "if you're into that kind of thing, there are some more in the back. Wanna see?"

Ezekiel had a really bad feeling about where this conversation was going.

"Hmmm, tempting," Izzy replied, rocking back and forth on her heels. She turned to him and asked, "What do you think, Ezekiel?"

He looked at her, looked at the gothic woman, and said defiantly, "I think it's best we leave, eh."

"Sorry, gothic lady," Izzy said as she and Ezekiel headed out. "Maybe if things don't work between us two, we can scissor some other time!"

"I look forward to that," the gothic woman called to Izzy.

* * *

"Dare I ask what that was a'boot, eh?"

"She wanted to have sex with me."

Ezekiel stared at Izzy as they continued to walk. The prairie boy began to stammer, unable to say all the things he wanted to at once.

"What, you don't like the idea of two gals going wham-bam?" Izzy asked, giggled. "E-Scope and that freaky gothic lady going boom-boom in da back room?"

"Would you?" was only what Ezekiel could bring himself to say; he really regretted it, that wasn't the first thing he truly wanted to say.

"Nah, I don't swing that way. Never done anything like that before," she admitted. "Though this will be really interesting to tell people. Goth woman in the porn store wanted to do me. Think they'll believe me, Zeke?"

"Why would you tell them you were in a porn store, eh?"

"You know, you're right! It makes it even more startling if I tell them I was somewhere else," Izzy said, rubbing his hands together. "Where should I tell them that gothic lady propositioned me? At a coffee store? Outside our hotel? Oh, how about in church?"

Ezekiel frowned. "E-Scope, that's sacrilegious."

"But that makes the story so much more fun to tell!"

"But in church? Aren't you afraid you'll offend someone, eh?"

"I said no to her, didn't I?"

Ezekiel sighed and shook his head. "Soo'ry, but I cannot imagine my mother approving of such a joke, and I guess I get that from her."

"I love how you have such respect for your parents," she gushed. She was staring at Ezekiel rather fondly as she spoke. "You close to your mom?"

"Of course, eh. She's a wonderful person! I think you'd really like her, she loves to tell stories too."

"Ooo, goody! Momma Ezekiel is a gifted story teller like me!"

She giggled and swung her arms back and forth. "So, Zeke, did you have fun today?"

"What do you mean, eh? The day's just starting."

"Really? I'm so tired... oh, that was because I was up so late on the mission and spying on Eva and Noah."

"Spying on them? Why?"

Izzy clapped her hand shut over her mouth, then looked innocently at Ezekiel. "Um, they were arguing?"

"Late at night, eh?"

"Well, it was the kind of arguing that involved a lot of tongue-lashing."

Ezekiel stared at her. The two had stopped walking ever since Izzy accidentally let the cat out of the bag. She sighed and said, with the same kind of tone as a defeated prisoner with classified information, "Tongue lashing, as in they had their tongues in the other's mouth."

The prairie boy's jaw dropped. "Um, E-Scope, did the porn store go to your head, eh?"

"No, I'm not making this up! I saw them last night in the pool, as I was getting out to pull my vengeful prank on those two jerk bouncers! They were sucking face, and it was really, really wet and hot, and Noah was squeezing her boobs and sucking her nips, and Eva was giving him a hand-job, and... and..."

Izzy stopped when she saw Ezekiel was staring at her incredulously. "You don't believe E-Scope," she muttered accusingly, hanging her head.

"No actually... it's a lot to take all at once. This does explain a lot, eh."

"Really?" Her head snapped back up, her green eyes shining.

"Yeah! See, you haven't bin aroo'nd Playa des Losers 2 since the start, and Eva and Noah have been exchanging these little smiles and grins, eh They defend each other when arguments break 'oot, and when they insult each other, neither really seems to react."

"That must have caused some signals, Eva being insulted and not reacting," Izzy replied, chuckling. "Oh, man, I'm so glad you believed me."

"Why would I think you were lying?"

"Most people don't believe E-Scope when she tells them these kinds of things."

"Well, I do, eh."

"Really? Even the one with the dragon?"

"That one is a little dubious, but you were five at the time, could have been a mistake."

"I'm pretty sure it was real," she said, kicking at the ground. "But oh well, the Eva and Noah story is so much more incredible than any old dragon!"

"I agree, eh. Those two, in love?"

"Well, I don't know if they're in love," Izzy said as they started walking again. "I mean, it could only be physical."

"Really?" Ezekiel looked upset by this. "That's not so great, eh. I mean, I couldn't see myself doing that with a girl if I didn't have some deep affection for her."

"No quickie in the back room for Zeke?"

"Yuck. No, eh."

"E-Scope's so proud of you!"

She threw her arms around him, hugging him around the side. It was an awkward hug, but a hug nonetheless. As he returned it, he noticed she was starting to slide down. He managed to catch her before she hit the pavement.

"E-Scope, are you okay?"

"Ugh. E-Scope's really tired," she murmured, her voice very soft. "Could you carry me back to the hotel? I think being out for so long has taken its toll on me."

"Sure thing, eh."

He lifted her up bridal-style, and she purred, nuzzling his shoulder. "Shoe's on the other foot now, huh my Zeke?"

"Aye, but let's not make this a tradition, eh."

"I dunno," she hummed, wrapping her arms around his neck. "We talk at breakfast, go strolling around town, visit a porn store, then one of us carries the other back to their hotel room. Could be a fun tradition."

As he carried the zonked girl back to the hotel (which he could see peeking over the smaller builders), Ezekiel noticed a lot of things about her that he didn't notice before.

Her soft skin resembled his mom's coffee after she had put an abundance of cream in it. The redhead had a few small scars, a couple of them from cuts, one from a small burn wound on her left leg, and something that resembled a surgical scar where her left shoulder met her neck. Izzy also had an outie belly button, one that begged to be poked; the temptation was great, but Ezekiel's arms were busy.

As she was being carried in his arms, Izzy noticed a few things about him that even her keen eyes didn't notice before.

He had a small scar hidden under his chin fuzz, something she suspected he tried to hide. His gray shirt under his jacket was very loose-fitting, all of his clothing was loose fitting. This didn't change the fact that his arms were strong, and he wasn't having trouble carrying her.

Something hard and pointy was in his jacket pocket, poking into her hip. She reached in and fished it out, marveling at the golden bling.

"You still got your Zed?" she asked, smiling up at him. He smiled, looking a little embarrassed. "Where did you get anyway? Win it in a rap battle or something?"

Ezekiel didn't know what a "rap battle" was, but it sounded dangerous. This made him a little ashamed to admit when he said, "No, it was at the gift shop at the last resort, eh. Had one fur every letter, I picked 'oot a Zed."

"Well, you cannot always win bling via bloodshed, like I had to once," she said. As she spoke, she looked up at him with sleepy, pleading eyes. "Could I wear it for a little bit, my Zeke?"

"Sure, but it doesn't go with your name, E-Scope."

"Hmmm," she said as she hung the golden necklace around her neck. "You can call me Izzy so long as I wear this, Zeke. We'll call ourselves the Zed-Pair if we ever get a second one."

Ezekiel was near their hotel, and he had to kick the button to open the iron gates. Bridgette and Cody were the only ones around the pool, and when they saw the prairie boy carrying Izzy in, both freaked.

"Oh my God! Izzy," Bridgette shouted, rushing over. Cody was also running over, looking worried.

"What happened?" the tech-geek asked, his fists up to his mouth.

"Nothing happened, she's okay, eh," Ezekiel explained. "We went fur a walk, and she got sleepy."

Both Bridgette and Cody looked at him incredulously. He looked away for a brief moment, realizing how ridiculous this sounded. "Um, do either of you knoo' which is her room?" he asked. "She forgot to tell me befur she fell asleep, eh."

"I'm still awake," Izzy said, her voice very soft and her eyes shut.

"Dude, she's wearing your bling," Cody noted, then looked at Ezekiel slyly. The prairie boy didn't know how to interpret this, but Bridgette's icy stare was saying enough.

"Does she want you carrying her?" the surfer girl asked, accusingly.

"She asked me to, eh."

Bridgette continued to stare at him, her pale green eyes penetrating his heart. Him having a crush on the blond surfer made her angry glare harder to tolerate than any of the other girls at the resort.

"Bridgie, don't be mad at him," Izzy sang, wiggling against the prairie boy. "Zeke is a good guy."

Cody and Bridgette stared at Izzy, then at Ezekiel, who shrugged. "Can either of you help me get her to her room now, eh?"

* * *

Izzy woke up late that night. She had been having a wonderful dream where she actually caught her prey and let him have it, which gave her a burst of adrenaline that woke her up.

"Aw damn," she cursed. "I never get the taste of fresh blood in my dreams."

Realizing it was almost midnight, she opened up her window. Looking up at the full, glowing moon, she grinned.

The redhead arched her back as she began to howl. Long, sorrowful howls that echoed into the night. Pretty soon, a light flickered on in the room next to her.

"GODDAMN IT ALL TO HELL! IZZY!!!"

The window to Izzy's right slid open, and a very angry, tan face stuck out to glare over at Izzy. The redhead simply grinned back at the furious look.

"Hi, Courtney!"

"Izzy! How many times do I have tell you, you keep your howling to yourself!? I'm sick of being woken up this late," Courtney shrieked.

"My name's E-Scope."

"I DON'T CARE, DAMN IT!"

The window to Izzy's left swung open, and Noah popped out, his night cap fluttering in the soft breeze. "Jesus," he swore, "will you shut the hell up?"

"See, Izzy, now you got Noah up too," Courtney declared.

"No, I mean you, Courtney," Noah shouted. "I was asleep until you started screeching like a banshee!"

"I don't screech," she replied, screeching.

"You're doing it right now!"

"Oh, _damn_ _it_, you guys!"

The window next to Courtney's opened, and a furious Tyler leaned out. "Why are you all shouting out here? It's almost frickin' midnight!"

"Izzy woke us up with her howling," Courtney shouted.

"Correction: Izzy woke _you_ up," Noah countered. "We were all sleeping until you became a CIT, that is, a Caterwauling In Training!"

"How _dare_ you!"

"Oh I dare, Crazy In Training!"

"What the heck is 'caterwauling'?" Tyler asked.

"It's another word for screaming, jock boy."

"Will you two shut up?" Courtney demanded. "Let's just get some sleep! Izzy, that goes for... you too..."

Courtney stopped when she saw that Izzy had already retreated back into her room, closing the window behind her.

* * *

**(Warning: contents are mature.)**

Izzy lay on her bed, feeling satisfied after a good moon howling. Still, she couldn't help but feel restless too, and tossed and turned.

She tried to think of the events of the day. It started at past midnight, when she chugged down her two last energy drinks to stay awake. Then she snuck out, only to see Noah and Eva, of all people, reach second base. After that, she smeared those two bouncer jerks and everything they owned with honey.

After that, she met up with Ezekiel, and talked to him for several hours. They went out walking, saw the abandoned film lot TDA was on, visited her honey victims, then went into a porn store.

Now she had something to focus on, the lesbian lady who worked there; though she might have been bisexual, though Izzy didn't recall her looking much at Ezekiel. "_How could she have ignored him, he was handsome?_" she thought.

"_Wait, Zeke as handsome? Did I just think that? Well of course I did, I would know better than anyone! Silly E-Scope._

"_Wonder what it would have been like if I had done the uppy-down with her?_" she mused as she stretched out. She smiled at the thought of exploring new territory. "_She was pretty hot, though I don't recall Ezekiel looking at her too fondly..._

_"She did have large boobs, and large boobs are fun to squeeze. She had good hair, the purple and red streaks were nice. Her top kind was kind of like Gwen's but more slutty, with a much deeper neckline and tummy exposed too._"

Izzy giggled as she tried to imagine Gwen wearing that. No, it wouldn't work, the goth girl had smaller breasts, a lower neckline wouldn't work for her.

"_Porn store goth woman had a lot of piercings like Duncan, wonder if she had nipple piercings,_" Izzy thought, giggling at the thought. "_How does one go about doing that? I wonder if some people try to do it themselves._"

The thought of botching that made Izzy wince. As much as she enjoyed an enjoyable experience of something new, that wasn't inviting at all.

Izzy continued to think of what would have happened if she had taken up Porn Store Goth Woman's offer. Since that would be too long to cry out in the heat of passion, Izzy gave her a temporary name, dubbing her Trina; Trina sounded like a good name for a lesbian goth woman working at a porn store.

After thinking about this for a few minutes, she found out she was getting bored. Trina couldn't get her excited, even using Izzy's vivid imagination. "_Be more interesting if Ezekiel took me to the back room_."

"_WHOA! Did I just think that? Well duh, E-Scope, you'd know better than anyone._"

The redhead sighed and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. Ezekiel and her, getting their groove on, as a friend of hers once put it. She giggled at the thought of Ezekiel being sexy, it so didn't fit his shy, home school style.

Something appealed about him taking her in his arms, though not carrying style, in lovers embracing style. Izzy hummed happily, imagining him wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close.

"_The night is wild, my dear E-Scope_," he pictured him whispering into her ear. "_It is wild, and so are you, eh. Let me be the one to tame the savage beast within._"

Izzy burst out laughing, rolling off the bed in her mirth. As she pulled herself back up, she tried to imagine something else.

"_What if it had been Zeke and I in the pool_?" she thought. "_Yeah, us instead of Noah and Eva! Though Ezekiel would never be that forward_..."

She didn't want to make herself burst out laughing again, so she tried picturing other handsome men. When Justin came to mind, she gagged and fanned away the thought. Even Trina wasn't doing much to entertain her, although it was amusing to think of her in a leather bikini.

"_The guys would probably drool until they dehydrated themselves over her in that,_" Izzy thought, giggling.

Her thoughts drifted back to Ezekiel, and she pictured him holding her in the pool. She could feel those arms, stronger than one would think, holding her close. She pictured herself kissing him, swooning, him moaning in pleasure at kissing a girl.

As Izzy pretended to pull off her swimming cap and toss it away, her other hand stroked her chest, right above her breasts. Sighing happily, she continued to think of the fake but very romantic scenario.

"_I thought you only did this with girls you were in love with, Ezekiel,_" she cooed in the dream as he kissed her neck.

"_I am for you, my E-Scope,_" he said between kisses. She cooed, both in the dream and in real life.

"_My E-Scope._" The thought of someone calling her name with a loving, wanting tone was enough to make her shiver with happiness. Her free hand traveled downwards, slipping under her skirt and her panties.

Izzy continued to fantasize about Ezekiel kissing her, holding her close. He could picture her peeling down her bikini strap, just like Noah had done to Eva. Though in this romantic occasion, Izzy wouldn't threaten to break Ezekiel's legs. No no, they were too much in love to make such a crass threat.

As her imagination began to heat up, so did her body temperature. Her fingers went in and out of her, and she began to whimper.

"Oh Zeke," she cooed in real life. "Oh... my Zeke!"

Something clattered around her neck. She glanced down and saw that Ezekiel's Z-medallion had slid off her chest from her heavy breathing.

She stopped suddenly when she realized what she was doing. "You idiot," she cried out, slapping her in the forehead, withdrawing her other hand from down below. "Ezekiel is your friend! He is nice to you!"

Izzy sat upright, holding her head up and letting her red locks dangle around. "E-Scope, you stupid girl. Don't blow this. He is your friend, someone you can trust."

"_But how far can I trust him_?" she dared herself to think. "_If Izzy trusted Ezekiel with my heart, would he keep it safe?_"

"No, I can't ask him that," she told herself. "It's not fair to him to do that. You have too much weight on your heart, too much from being... Izzy.

"Be E-Scope, the girl with the right answers, the right kind of friendship. Do that... and something good may come of this."

She sighed, and shook her head a little. "_All Izzy wants is a friend. Izzy wants someone to be there and listen to her. Someone to care for her since her-_"

"Don't think about it," she chastised herself. "You have enough problems as it is without dragging _them_ into the equation. Like this problem right here. You're arguing with yourself like if you're two different people."

"_Izzy and E-Scope are the same person. Izzy just has the past that makes her sad. Izzy wants Ezekiel to be Ezekiel, E-Scope is the one masturbating over someone not like him._"

Izzy sighed. She had no good comeback to herself on that one.

* * *

The next morning, Izzy woke up well-rested. She normally hated sleeping in, it left less of the day to have fun! But after such a full day yesterday, she felt she had deserved it.

After she got dressed and left her room, she was startled by a couple people screaming and door slamming. Some of the shouting was obviously Eva, while some of it was a high-pitched pleading that Izzy didn't recognize.

When the redhead dared to investigate, she saw Ezekiel was standing over a young asian girl, obviously a hotel staff member due to her attire. The poor girl was sobbing and shaking, looking very pale. As she sobbed, Ezekiel was talking to her in a language Izzy thought might be Japanese or one of the Chinese dialects.

"What went down, my Zeke?" Izzy asked, approaching the two. Ezekiel's gold Z bling swung back and forth as she walked forward.

The asian girl started to talk, her voice high with terror and panic. Ezekiel listened, nodding, then turned to Izzy.

"Sakaki said when she went to go clean Eva's room, Eva was there and she started freaking 'oot, eh."

After more whimpering from the girl, Ezekiel added, "Eva started throwing things at her and bellowing, but Sakaki doesn't know English that well, so she couldn't understand what Eva was mad a'boot."

"Probably sexual frustration," Izzy commented. "She's not getting enough from Noah?"

"E-Scope...," Ezekiel said, then Sakaki threw herself on the prairie boy, sobbing still. Izzy felt a strong twinge of jealousy, but brushed it away when she saw the cute girl's face contorted with fright.

"She's really woo'ried this could cost her her job," Ezekiel explained to Izzy as he hugged Sakaki. "She needs it because her family is saving up money to get her fiancé from oversees here."

Izzy blinked, and took another look at the asian girl. She looked only slightly older than them, and her blue-dyed hair didn't help make her look older. "Looks awfully young to be engaged," Izzy commented. "She marrying a shogun or a samurai?"

Ezekiel shrugged, and then held Sakaki's shoulders. He asked her a question in Japanese, and the girl managed to laugh despite her fear. When she answered, Ezekiel said to Izzy, "He's a lawyer."

"Oh goody! When we get him over here, Courtney can hire him to sue Chris!"

After comforting Sakaki a little bit more, the asian girl walked off, thanking Ezekiel in English before leaving. "She's going to relax in the employee break room for a little bit, eh," he explained to Izzy. "It's not the first time Eva's gone at her, but it is the first time she's thrown stuff at Sakaki."

"Wow, she must have been really mad," Izzy remarked. "Must be really sexually frustrated."

"Well, Eva reminds her of her step mom; Sakaki came to Canada because of her, she was really abusive, eh. But doo'nt tell Sakaki I told you that, please?"

"I don't speak Japanese, my Zeke... hey," Izzy looked at Ezekiel curiously, "how do you know so much about her, huh?"

"She was with the staff at the resort for TDI, all the staff members here are, eh," Ezekiel said. "I knoo' her pretty well, since I used to talk to the staff a lot."

"Wow. Zeke's making time with the hired help! Hoping to get points with the cooks and cleaners, eh?"

"Most of them just wanted to talk to someone who spoke their native language, eh."

"How many languages do you speak, my Zeke?"

"Eight."

"You'd make an awesome international spy! Ever think of that as a career?"

"You mean like James Bond, eh? Naw, I'd rather be a teacher or a doctor."

"You could be an international spy who has a doctor's degree, like Dr. Tran! But anyway, Zeke, what languages do you speak?"

"English, Spanish, Japanese, Cantonese, French, Russian, Hindi, and German."

Izzy beamed at him. "You gonna add any more to your repertory, my Zeke?"

"I've been working on Hebrew, eh, but it's been hard to concentrate around here. Everything's really, forgive my language, pissy."

The redhead giggled. "Oh, you don't say? I didn't notice."

"Yeah, especially Eva and Courtney. And Bridgette's been really depressed lately."

* * *

Later that day merely proved Ezekiel's observations. The latest episode of Total Drama Action was airing, and it featured a beach party theme. Bridgette gasped when she saw Chris enter the cafeteria dressed up.

"That's my surfboard," she cried out, pointing at it on the screen. "Why does he have my surfboard?"

"Bridgette, be quiet, I cannot hear," Noah grumbled, and Eva grunted in agreement.

The surfer girl did not argue, she continued to watch. As they all watched the campers try to surf over the pool of shark-infested water in the freezing room, Eva looked furious.

"These guys _suck_," she shouted. "None of them are lasting five seconds!"

The others weren't so bitter. Tyler was swooning over his girlfriend, who was wearing a small red bikini. Geoff was cheering on his friends. Izzy was taking bets with Cody and Noah who would be eaten if any of them were.

When Duncan won the surfing challenge, the audience of ex-contestants burst into cheers, Courtney loudest of all. Tyler was shouting mad at Chris ("How DARE he throw my girlfriend!"), and Bridgette looked distraught.

"He won the surfing challenge?" the surfer girl shouted indignantly. "Him? Duncan?!"

"Yes, what's wrong with that?" Courtney asked, looking over at her friend; it was awfully fortunate timing, for the CIT just missed Duncan and Gwen hug in celebration.

Bridgette was quiet for a couple seconds, then said, "Excuse me," and left the room; Geoff sadly watched her go, and sighed miserably.

Ezekiel saw the devastated look in Bridgette's eyes, and Izzy noticed Ezekiel looking at her. With a sly smile, she decided to investigate.

"Boy, you really like Surfer Girl, don't you?" she asked, scooting in closer to him.

"Hmm? Oh yeah, kind of, eh," he admitted, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, she's super hot, athletic, kind, and from what we've seen, she really likes to make out," Izzy listed them, then giggled and made kissing noises.

"Yeah, but not only is she taken, eh, it's just like I said. She's really been depressed of late."

"Maybe she's sad she's not competing?" Sadie asked. When Izzy and Ezekiel looked over at her, the girl covered her mouth and added, "Oh sorry! I sometimes butt into conversations I'm not part of."

"Naw, it's okay, eh," Ezekiel said, shrugging. "But you're probably right, Bridgette did look pretty sad when she was eliminated in TDI."

"That was because she didn't get to kiss Geoff good-bye," Sadie said. "And she smelt real, skunky bad."

"It must suck to be the first one eliminated," Katie said, nodding. "I mean, I couldn't imagine how I'd feel if I was voted off first. Could you guys?"

Izzy raised an eyebrow, and looked up at Ezekiel. The prairie boy was tapping his fingers together and focus his gaze on the TV screen.

* * *

**End of Part 2.**

* * *

--

--

--

So what is bothering Bridgette, you might be wondering? What's bothering Izzy, for that matter? And how are things going to pick up for Ezekiel and E-Scope? These will be answered in due time!

In case you are wondering, you will eventually where Izzy and Ezekiel got their scars, and who ordered the boys to not associate with Ezekiel.

**[1] **"La Gota! Es la Gota!" translates to "The Blob! It's the Blob!"


	3. Dating Tips, The Do's and Really Don'ts

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Things are beginning to heat up! Please do not take any angry insults by characters as the author's opinions, they are known as drama.

* * *

**Chapter 3** - He's Actually Quite Into You, And Be Honest, You Really Are That Into Him Too

* * *

Izzy was sitting with Courtney, Bridgette, Geoff, and Cody for lunch. The ex-contestants were gathered up for lunch. It would have seemed silly to them to gather up for something like lunch, but since they all loved the real and very good food served at the hotel, they were all for it.

"Does Trent's obsession with nine weird any of you out?" Courtney was asking them as she sipped her tea.

"A little, yeah," Geoff admitted. "Dude doesn't realize it's weirding people out."

"I just wish Owen would give Gwen and Trent a moment of peace," Cody said between bites of his sandwich.

Bridgette looked over at him, raising one of her eyebrows. "You mean you want Gwen to stay with Trent, Cody?"

"Of course! I helped hook them up, didn't I?" the tech-geek replied. "I just hope this whole competition doesn't drive them apart."

"It probably will," Izzy said. "Trent's more than likely gone through an ugly breakup, which is why he's so worried he is going to lose Gwen."

"What makes you think that, Red?" Geoff asked.

Izzy decided to let this nickname slide, mostly because Geoff had been calling her that longer than her name had become officially E-Scope. "Well, I've been through a bad breakup, so I know what it's like for Trent. Though I had it a little easier, since the two-faced bastard went and started a cheerleader _immediately_ after dumping me, at school, in the middle of class!"

"That sounds terrible," Ezekiel said.

"Oh, I know, it was, but I got back at him," Izzy said, looking around at Ezekiel, who was sitting at another table alone. She turned back to her own table partners and said, "I put water balloons in his locker, and boy did he get it."

Geoff laughed, while Courtney and Bridgette didn't look as amused; Cody was chuckling nervously, because he actually had that happen to him.

Courtney was looking at Izzy's neck and muttered, "Why are you wearing the sexist's bling, Izzy?"

"When wearing it, you all can call me Izzy, since E-Scope has no Zeds."

The others took this in as best as they could cope with it, like they did with most stuff Izzy said. As the conversation came back to TDA, Cody asked them, "So who do you think will be the next to be voted off?"

"I hope Duncan," Bridgette remarked, almost hiding behind her tea mug as she said it.

"Bridgette," Courtney gasped, gaping at her friend. "How can you say that?"

"Does this mean Courtney admits she and Duncan are dating?" Ezekiel asked Izzy.

"Good question," Izzy said, then turned to Courtney. "Ezekiel wants to know if this means you two are dating."

"No, and shut up, Ezekiel!"

Izzy turned around and said, "Courtney wants you to shut up."

"All right, I was just asking an innocent question, but oh well, eh."

Izzy turned back to Courtney. "Ezekiel says he'll be good."

"Why are you doing that?" the CIT asked, scowling at the redhead.

"Well, you guys didn't want Ezekiel to join us, so I figured this would be the only way he could get involved in the conversation."

"He's not allowed in the conversation, period," Courtney hissed, then she turned to Bridgette. "And why do you want my boyf-... umm, Duncan, why do you want him voted off?"

"Yeah, Bridge, why?" Geoff asked, looking at his girlfriend.

Bridgette had sunk into her chair, looking very small now. "I... I... it was just an idea," she muttered, looking away. "I couldn't think of anyone else at the time."

"What about Heather?" Courtney declared. "She's on the same team as Duncan, why not her? We all don't like her, she's an absolute witch!"

"Agreed," Cody said.

"She's only on the show because another low-life was helping her during the hunt for the briefcase," the CIT continued, glaring at her mug. "Oh, when I get my hands on Harold, I'm gonna..."

"Courtney," Bridgette started, and was silenced by an angry look from her mocha-skinned friend.

"What? What?! Don't tell me you're defending that creep," she snapped. "He rigged the votes, he helped Heather in that last TDI challenge, and he's _still_ being nice to Heather!"

"Maybe Heather and Harold have an understanding, eh?" Ezekiel suggested.

"Good point, my Zeke," Izzy said, then turned around to the others. "Ezekiel thinks maybe Heather and Harold understan-"

"Shut up, you sexist pig," Courtney shouted directly at Ezekiel. But that didn't stop Izzy from turning around back to him.

"Courtney is suggesting you shut up again."

"I doo'nt think I'm wanted in this conversation, eh."

The CIT slammed her fist down on the table. Her face was scrunching up in anger, and she was close to heaving mad. "Ezekiel," she hissed, very low and slowly, "I want you to get out of here. Right. Now."

Izzy turned around. "Courtney's suggesting you leave, but that's silly, because you're not at the same ta-"

"Izzy," the CIT snapped, her voice and her fist trembling, "will you _please_ knock that off?!"

"It is kind of strange, Red dudette," Geoff said. Bridgette was nodding behind her tea mug. Cody looked sympathetically at Izzy.

"Hey," Izzy said with a nonchalant shrug, "I'm allowed to talk to him if I want to-"

"It's okay, E-Scope, I'll be off," Ezekiel said as he stood up. "Bye for now, guys, Courtney, Izzy, Bridgette."

He walked over, hands in his jacket pockets. Courtney let out a sigh of relief and said, "Finally. I thought he'd never go."

"He wasn't even here," Izzy pointed out. "Much like a ghost. I knew a ghost once, really morbid fellow."

"We all agreed not to talk to Ezekiel after what he said in TDI," Courtney snapped at Izzy. "Are you associating yourself with that sexist pig? Because we all agreed not to."

"I was never at the meeting, might have been busy that day."

"Izzy, you're making a terrible mistake if you go against what the other girls agreed on."

"I only fear oversized carnivores and flying," Izzy said, grinning as she narrowed her eyes at Courtney, "and you are neither."

* * *

**(Warning, contents are maturing.)**

Ezekiel was wandering through the hallways, feeling a little dejected, when he almost ran into Izzy. The near-collision happened right where they ran into each other the first time.

"Hey, Zeke, sorry that whole communications idea didn't fly," Izzy said, shrugging. "Courtney is a strong interceptor."

"She can carry a grudge, eh?" Ezekiel commented, chuckling lightly.

"You're too generous. I barely know anyone as harsh as her, and those that I do know are...," Izzy shuddered, then took a deep breath, "they're not fun."

"I can imagine," Ezekiel said as he leaned against the wall. "Are you sure you're not risking anything by talking to me, Izzy?"

"What, you think they can tell E-Scope what to do?" Izzy cackled. "Oh, here's your bling back. People are getting too used to calling me Izzy again."

As Ezekiel took his medallion back and pocketed it, he said, "So, what would you like to do today, E-Scope?"

"Well, for starters, I want to get you and Bridgette on a date!"

The prairie boy thought that, after all the things Izzy said and did yesterday, nothing she said could startle him. He was really wrong.

"Wh-wh-what?!" he stammered, staring at her incredulously.

"You and Bridgette would be so cute together," Izzy said, clasping her hands and spinning around. "And I know you likes her!"

Ezekiel swallowed as he fidgeted with his toque. "But she hates me, eh."

"Bridgette doesn't _hate_ you, Zeke. There's no way she can hate someone, she's not the kind of person to hate."

"Okay, eh, but she seriously does not like me."

"Ah, touché," Izzy said. "But seriously, you should try."

"She also has a boyfriend, eh."

"That? Nah, my good Zeke, that is just merely a barrier, a test that you are more worthy. It is like my...," she stopped, then continued more seriously, "well, it's like someone I know said it. But my point is, if you keep letting the idea of Geoff distract you, you'll never get Bridgette!"

"But they seem really happy together, eh."

"Do they?" she said as she coiled one of his jacket's hood strings around her finger playfully. "Are they making out anymore nowadays? Did you see how Bridgette was shrinking down during the talk at lunch. Methinks Bridgette and Geoff are having problems, and you can be the cure."

"Are... are you sure a'boot this?"

"No, but love should not wait, my dear Zeke," she said as she tugged on his hood string. "C'mon, pretty soon, the season will be over, and we might all go home soon. What, you think Chris can keep us for another season?"

"I actually expect him to, eh."

"Ah, touché again, my Zeke! But nevertheless, you must court Bridgette so that you can get the super hot, athletic, kindhearted surfer girl who loves making out with you!

"So tell me, if you were going to ask Bridgette ask, what's the first thing you would say to her?"

"Um...," Ezekiel stammered, poking his fingers together, "are you forgetting she still really doesn't like me?"

"Oh dang, I forgot," Izzy snapped her fingers. "What's her deal, huh? You're really cool, and I know that! We learned that from our walk yesterday."

"I just want to say real quick, that it was a lot of fun."

"Aww, you're sweet, Zeke. I had a lot of fun too!"

"Great! So should we go over how we get Bridgette to stop seriously disliking me, eh?"

"Eventually. Let's start with how you want to ask her out. Now what would you ask her first?"

Ezekiel scratched his head underneath his toque. "Um... 'would you like to have dinner sometime, Bridgette'?"

"No," Izzy shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. "No no no! You ask her out for coffee first! A meal is a big thing, Zeke! A statement, an advancement!"

"But I doo'nt drink coffee."

"Well that's good, because neither does she. Ask her out to tea, then."

"Is that how people normally ask others 'oot?"

"No, but we're unique here, Zeke. Now focus! How are you going to ask Bridgette out for tea?"

"... When Geoff and Courtney aren't around, eh?"

"Noooo... yeah, actually that would be a good idea," Izzy said, tapping her chin. "But Zeke, you're not getting this! Like, when is it okay for you to kiss her during a date?"

"Um, I doo'nt knoo', eh."

"Zeke, look," she said as she walked over to one of the doors in the hallway. "If a girl is looking at you romantically, at _you_, and there's a pregnant pause, she wants you to fill in that pause by smooching her!"

"Really?"

"Yeah! See, let's say I'm courting Bridgette," Izzy said. She traced out Bridgette's shape next to her. "See that? That's Bridgette, right there."

"Um, okay, eh."

"Then I wait to see if she goes into her room, which we'll say is this one. If she doesn't, and she making small talk with long pauses, and especially if she's got a little, anxious laugh in her voice, then she wants me!"

Izzy grinned, set her arm against the door, and leaned in and kissed imaginary Bridgette. "Then you see, if she continues to kiss me back, mwah mwah, I'd go for wrapping my arms around that slender waist of her's."

She did this, pulling the imaginary girl to her as she continued to fake kiss her. When the redhead started let out little sighs and moans, Ezekiel was not only at full attention, but rather startled.

"Um, E-Scope?"

"And then," Izzy said between her kisses, "if she's pressing herself up to me, I take her into the room..."

She pushed on the door and pretended to lead her and her invisible date in. Izzy's hands were going all over imaginary Bridgette's back, and she was really getting into kissing thin air, moaning happily.

"Oh, she's a great kisser, my Zeke! You're gonna love it when it reaches this step!"

"Uh, E-Scope..."

"Then, if her hands are wandering all over your body, start by giving her butt a little cupping," Izzy said, reaching for where Bridgette's butt would be. "Don't slap it, that's not the kind of girl Bridgette is."

She began to lightly stroke the nonexistent butt. Ezekiel was looking around to make sure no one was around to see Izzy making first base with a nonexistent partner.

"Then I'd suggest you feel her sides right where her breasts are, but don't touch her breasts," Izzy said, pointing at Ezekiel. "Focus, Zeke, this part is important! I'm carrying her to the wall, and I'm going to romantically push her against it so that she feels safe and secure, nowhere to go except my lips!"

Izzy pulled her nonexistent partner over the wall like she said, keeping a bit of distance as she continued to kiss. She then turned around and pressed her back to the wall. "I'm Bridgette now, Zeke? You got that?"

"Okay, you're Bridgette..."

"If I'm moaning a lot, or really happy, or if I start wrapping my legs around where I was, like this..."

Izzy coiled a leg around where her waist used to be. "... then I'm really into it. I suggest you wait until next date to advance it to second base, unless I, or well, Bridgette..."

The redhead went back to her original position and began kissing the nonexistent partner again. "If she's got this earnest whimper in her moans, like she really wants it, then it's safe to go to next level."

Izzy began to pull the jacket off of imaginary Bridgette, then her shirt. "If you don't know how to unhook a bra, I'll teach you to do that. But I do, so Bridgette won't have to have me pull it over her head. That's not as romantic as unhooking it and pulling it off, like this."

The crazy girl reached around nonexistent Bridgette, wiggled her fingers around a little, then stripped off the bra of her partner, leaving the nonexistent girl topless.

"Now don't just latch your mouth on there, you wild boy," she instructed, shaking her finger. "You gotta marvel her breasts, gently caress them, kiss the tops. You getting all this?"

"Um, yeah," Ezekiel said, slightly muffled because his hand was covering his mouth and his very red face.

"Good, now Bridgette... oh Bridgette."

Izzy took Bridgette's imaginary face into her hands and really began to fake kiss, going so far as to stick her tongue out. Ezekiel had to swallow hard when watching this.

"Oh, Bridgette, I love you, eh. I've bin watching you since the beginning of season one, eh," Izzy said, mimicking Ezekiel's voice. The redhead's hips began grinding into her nonexistent partner's. "I've bin wanting to do this with you fur so long, eh."

"Oh my," Ezekiel said, biting his finger now.

The redhead, panting now, placed a hand on her partner's belly, and slipped it down below. "Oh, what soft panties you have, Bridgette," she purred. "Delicate, and so soft... like you, eh."

The prairie boy began swallowing more, stretching out his shirt collar though it wasn't tight at all.

Izzy began kissing down her invisible partner's neck, then went down to where Bridgette's breasts would be, if she was there in any respect.

"You have such beautiful pink nipples," Izzy cooed. She reached up and cupped the nonexistent breast, and started licking the nipple gently. She continued to do this until she was suckling the nipple, stroking her partner's sides with long, sweet caresses.

"Careful not to suck too hard," Izzy said, her voice slightly muffled because she miming it being covered. "A girl's nipples can be sensitive, and they're part of the body like anything else."

The prairie boy could only whimper in reply.

"Mmmm... you have delicious tits, Bridgette," Izzy said, giggling. "Oh, don't say that, Zeke, it's not romantic."

"R... r... right, eh."

Izzy slithered back up, cupping her nonexistent partner's face and kissing her passionately. She almost shoved this invisible partner against the wall as she began to writhe against her. "Oh God, I love you," she moaned. "I love you so much, Bridgette!"

Ezekiel nodded ever-so-slightly. He noticed something from the corner of his eye, and when he glanced over at what it was, all the color that had been filling his face left it.

"Oh Bridgette...," Izzy continued to moan and writhe against nonexistent Bridgette. "Have I told you what sweet lips you have, eh?"

"Um, E-Scope?" Ezekiel whimpered.

"I could kiss you until the season ends, eh," she continued, her hands going down to her partner's breasts and squeezing them slightly.

"E-Scope!"

"You have the softest, most beautiful breasts, eh," Izzy moaned as she ground her pelvis into her pinned partner. "But nothing is as gorgeous as your eyes, or your beautiful blond hair, or that golden heart of yours, eh-"

"IZZY!!!"

The redhead stopped for a second. "What?" she asked. "Am I overdoing the dialogue?"

Ezekiel could only point to the side. Izzy, with her hands on invisible Bridgette's breasts, her pelvis grinding into her partner's, and her lips puckered with her tongue peeking out, turned to look.

The real Bridgette, along with Geoff and Courtney, was standing there. Their eyes were saucer-wide, their jaws were agape, and none of them looked more horrified than Bridgette.

"Hiyas," Izzy said cheerfully as she turned around. "I was just instructing Ezekiel what to do if he ever asked Bridgette out!"

* * *

Ezekiel still wasn't sure how he survived that encounter.

He remembered running for his room (and for his life) the second the trip began to talk. He heard someone chasing after him, and guessed it was Courtney, because the CIT was shrieking fiercer than Ezekiel had ever heard her.

The prairie boy hid in his room for the rest of the day, not even daring to come out for dinner. His face was burning hot, his heart was pounding, and his head spun worse than any ever before, worse than any intellectual contest he had ever been in.

Izzy's actions still were alive in his mind. He couldn't believe she had done that. Though she had probably done more harm to what little reputation he had, he still found himself not that mad at her.

"_Sure, she just made everyone think I'm now the most lecherous man on this planet, in this solar system, but she was only trying to help, eh,_" he reasoned with himself. "_Still... she didn't have to say _that_ when they saw her_."

Ezekiel tried to think as the time went by, but all he could think about was how glad he was to still be alive, how embarrassed he was, and how hot and sweaty he felt. He kept grabbing his jacket and flapping it, but it did no good.

At about ten PM, he realized that he had to take a bath. His room only came with a shower, so he decided to visit somewhere else. Taking a towel and his bathing trunks, he peeked out of his room, and when he saw the coast was clear, he hurried out.

The indoor hot tub that the hotel had was large and very soothing. Ezekiel had become very fond of hot tubs ever since TDI, where he regularly soaked in that one for hours with nothing but his thoughts. It was bliss for him, but when Geoff and Bridgette were reunited, he soon found himself being evicted from his favorite spot because of unfavorable looks from the couple and other people.

Entering the hot tub room, he clicked the lock. He double-checked it, because Manuel of the hotel staff had warned him the lock wasn't working, and they were still trying to get someone to fix it. Ezekiel didn't want another case of him relaxing in here when Eva promptly walked in, and demanded he leave.

"_Come to think of it,_" he thought as he stripped out of his clothes and into his bathing suit, placing his discarded clothes and towel in the corner, "_I did pass by Noah while I made my way 'oot of there. Guess Eva and Noah were going to enjoy the hot tub together then._"

He sighed happily as he stepped in, letting his body adjust to the hot water. He pressed a few buttons on the console nearby it, and the bubbles started to kick in. The prairie boy leaned against the side and stared up at the ceiling.

"_I survive yet another day here at the plaza,_" he thought to himself. "_Funny. I'm nearly beaten to death several times, almost droo'n, but the most terrifying experience is caused by Izzy._

"_I really wish I understood girls better, I might be able to talk to her with'oot sounding so damn nervous all the time, eh. I really like her... despite her making wish I was dead today._"

He sat there, trying to gather what he truly thought of the crazy redhead. Ever since he had grown into puberty and taken a keen interest in meeting girls, he never imagined it being a girl like Izzy. Bridgette was more his type: she was gorgeous, she was smart and funny, she was caring to others, and she had the most charming smile he'd ever seen.

Izzy was different, in almost every way. She was gorgeous too, she was fit and her red hair was captivating, especially those cute red curls on both sides. She was also smart and quite funny, she spoke her mind, she had a lot of wild stories to tell. Though Bridgette was definitely warmer than Izzy, Ezekiel had seen her be nice and sweet, to humans and rattlesnakes. And while Izzy's grin wasn't as charming as Bridgette's smile, it had it's own appeal.

Ezekiel sighed. "_What am I thinking a'boot, eh?_" he thought. "_Do I actually think that Izzy and Bridgette would be interested in me? At all? I'm just the home schooled guy who offended everyone in the first episode of the show._

"_I ruined everything first day. How can they ever trust a guy who did that? Can I ever say I'm soo'ry enough to ever get them to trust me? Or is it like Izzy said, the girls would be too woo'ried that I'm just trying to get them into bed because I'm just a sexist pig who likes porn?_"

The prairie boy sighed again. He looked into the water, staring at the forming bubbles. He remembered when he had a lot on his mind at home, he would take a bath, and stick his head underwater for longer periods of time. Ezekiel had done this since he was a kid, not to the extent that he made his body cry out for air, but to the point where his thoughts came faster.

He dove underwater, hard to do in a hot tub but possible if he put his head in-between his knees. "_I just have to think a'boot surviving the rest of this show, with'oot someone killing me,_" he thought. "_But... wasn't the point of me joining this show to meet people my age? To finally have a social life, eh?_"

Ezekiel rose up and took a deep breath. He went back down, his hands over his ears in thought.

"_I should try to get to knoo' the guys and girls here, eh. I knoo' there might be some anger issues, and I can understand that. But if Izzy believes in me, then I should believe in me._

"_Izzy,_" he thought, shaking his head. "_She is such an enigma, but such a good person. She's really helped me these past couple days. I wonder how she feels a'boot me... I wonder if... I mean, I really like her... she's a fascinating and talented girl..._

"_Do I want to ask her 'oot instead of Bridgette?_"

His body was starting to plead with him to go up for air. He had been holding his breath for some time, possibly a minute or two. Ezekiel rose up, wiping his brunet bangs from his eyes as he sighed.

Someone in the room screamed. He cried out, leaping away from the source of the scream and accidentally hitting his side against the pool wall. He looked around wildly, and saw the screamer was in the pool with him.

It was Bridgette, dressed in a blue, two-piece bikini. She was staring at Ezekiel with wide, horrified eyes, the same she had when she saw Izzy making it to second base with an invisible her.

"What... what...," Bridgette stammered, and then she got mad. Really mad, and her face was starting to turn red. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

Ezekiel yelped and held his hands up in defense. "M-m-m-m-me?" he finally managed to spit out. "I was relaxing in here, eh!"

"You were hiding underwater," Bridgette shouted, wading over to him. Her green eyes were blazing with fury, and Ezekiel couldn't look away; he felt like his death was approaching him.

"I... I was just thinking a'boot things, eh," he said, pathetically.

"Just get out," the surfer girl hissed. She swung her hand at his face, screaming, "GET OUT!"

Ezekiel rose his arm just in time, and she struck his elbow. The surfer girl growled and started swinging at him. He suffered a few blows to his chest, shoulders and face before he managed to grab her wrists.

"Bridgette, please," he pleaded with her. "I was relaxing here, I wasn't snooping or anything like that!"

"Then why didn't you lock the door?!" Bridgette hollered, her face beet red with anger now.

"It doesn't work all the time, eh! Manuel says they're trying to get it fixed because it sometimes fails to lock properly!"

Bridgette heaved in anger, staring into his terrified eyes. Her fury diminished a little, but only enough that she stopped trying to hit him. She wrung her wrists out of his grasp, and continued to glare at him.

"Courtney was right," she spat at him. "You are a little, sexist pig."

"I am not!"

"You are too! You were always approaching me during TDI after I was voted off, and now... here you are in the hot tub when I wanted some time alone! How do you explain that?"

Ezekiel's toque was dripping water down over his face, which was red with embarrassment and shame; the hot water wasn't helping with that either. "It was coincidence, Bridgette."

"Oh, it was not," she spat, then turned her back to him. "Please leave, Ezekiel."

He stared at the back of her head. All of what she said hurt him more than he had been in his entire life. Ezekiel had always thought it would be pathetic if he cried in front of others, but he wanted to more anything right now.

"O... okay," he stammered, holding back the tears now. He waded past her towards the door, and put his hand up on the rim of the pool. His emotions held him back from leaving.

There was a small pause before he managed to say what he so desperately had wanted to say to her for a long time.

"Bridgette," he said, barely audible over the bubbling hot tub, "I never got a chance to say this... but I'm soo'ry."

He turned and looked at her. She was looking straight ahead, her arms crossed tightly and her expression still furious. "I'm really, really soo'ry. I knoo' what I said at the beginning of TDI was wrong... and I knoo' the way I approached you after you were voted off was wrong. I... I doo'nt expect you to forgive me, because I cannot blame you for hating me.

"I think you're an incredible girl, and you really do deserve better. Better than me, that is... and you didn't deserve to be voted off, on TDI and TDA."

She glanced over at him. Her chest was still heaving from deep and heavy breaths, but she was now no longer hissing them through her nose.

"I... I just wish I had a second chance to prove to you that I'm not a sexist creep, that I've changed from what I've seen and experienced during my time with real people," he continued, but he stopped and looked away. "No, I guess I blew that too, eh. I just hope you can be happy, Bridgette, so I'll stay my distance from you and the others."

He turned away so she didn't see the tears that spilled from his eyes. Trying to wipe them away, he felt his hands were shaking. His legs felt like lead, he couldn't left them at first.

Taking a deep breath, he managed to lift one of his legs up on the inner seat of the hot tub. Her hand gripped his shoulder and he looked around at her, expecting to be shouted at more.

Her facial expression was a mixture of astonishment and anguish. "Do you mean that?" she asked, her voice as quiet as his was. "Do you really mean that, Ezekiel?"

He managed to nod. "Yes, Bridgette, I really do."

She gently pulled him off the inner seat, and embraced him in a hug. He was greatly startled, especially as she pressed her head against his chest.

"I'm sorry too," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I'm so sorry... it's just... things are..."

She broke down, and started to cry. Collapsing on the inner seat of the hot tub, she covered her face in her hands.

"I shouldn't have shouted at you like that," she sobbed. "I've just been so... so... oh God, it's been horrible! I'm such a horrible person!"

He sat down next to her, trying to look into her green eyes. Tears were now falling from them, and Ezekiel subconsciously wiped his own tears away.

"It's... it's just that...," she stammered as she removed her hands from her face and look over at him, "I have had no one talk to about what's bothering me... I've always had someone, back at home, but here... I'm alone with how I'm feeling."

She took several deep breaths as they stared at each other. "If you want to talk a'boot it," Ezekiel said tenderly, "I could listen, eh."

"I'd... I'd really appreciate that," she said, managing to smile for a second. "You'd probably understand... it's kind of about how Geoff and I got voted off TDA."

Bridgette brushed her golden bangs away from her face before continuing. "Did you see it when it happened? On TV?"

He nodded. "Well, you remember what Duncan said?"

* * *

"_But... but...," Bridgette stammered, looking around at the faces of the other contestants, then to Geoff. Her voice was starting to crack as she said, "I thought everyone liked us!"_

_Duncan, nearby them, scoffed. "Yeah, 'liked' being the definitive word."_

* * *

"I never felt so hurt in my life," Bridgette admitted. "Duncan had just told me that all the people there, all the friends I made... Gwen, Leshawna, DJ, Harold... none of them _liked_ Geoff and I anymore?

"And how could I deny what he said wasn't true? They voted us off first! When Heather was there!"

She gripped her forehead and panted, trying to calm herself down. She looked over at Ezekiel again. "Was that how you felt when you were voted off first?"

"Well, I was hurt, but not too much, since I didn't knoo' any of you, eh."

"Oh, I see," she said, sighing. "I... I keep telling myself that I shouldn't let it get to me. If we were voted off first, it was for a reason. No need to pity yourself..."

She sobbed again. "But I can't help it! Duncan told me that my friends there didn't like me anymore, after all I had been through with them! I saw him talking to some of them before the voting ceremony, I didn't know he was trying to get us kicked off!"

Bridgette angrily struck the water. "I hate Duncan! I hate him so much! He's the meanest, sleaziest punk I know! And he singled me out too!

"He forced the guys to vote me off during TDI! I kept trying to tell myself that it was just strategy, but he had that smug, triumphant smile when he got the last marshmallow; he was trying to rub it in my face!

"And he didn't stop there," she cried out, gripping her forehead. "He had to go and treat Geoff miserably afterwards, and finished it by back stabbing my boyfriend and getting him kicked off! When Heather, the meanest and most vile girl I've ever known, was available to be voted off!"

Bridgette panted, trying to calm herself down. When she managed to do so, she continued, "And then he had to go and encourage everyone to vote Geoff and I off. Again, he back stabbed us again. That mean, wicked creep is just not happy with getting Geoff and I kicked off, he always has to go and rub it in by saying such hurtful things or smirking at us right after we lose!"

She dropped her voice to imitate Duncan. " '_Exactly, Gwen, we voted off Geoff because he's nice'! 'Liked being the definitive word here.' 'Get a room already'_!

"But I cannot tell any of my friends here, not even Geoff, because they all _like_ him so much," she cried out. "Courtney's in love with him, Geoff still thinks he's a really cool guy, and everyone else thinks he's this awesome rebel.

"I tried telling Geoff this, but he didn't agree. He didn't think Duncan was singling me or him out, and he felt that I was blaming his friend for our losses. I got mad when he said it was his own fault..."

She sniffed, wiping at her eyes before looking over at Ezekiel again. "So now it's all eating at me inside. I cannot stand it, I feel so guilty, angry, frustrated and sad. At Duncan, at Geoff, at Courtney, but mostly at me.

"I feel so mad at myself for blaming Duncan, I keep telling myself that it was my fault, both times, but I don't want to. I don't want to keep blaming myself, but I feel so sick deep down when I blame him... so then..."

Bridgette stopped, staring down at the water. She looked over at Ezekiel and said, "I made you the source of my anger. I couldn't get mad at my friends, or my boyfriend who I was losing the will to kiss because I felt so torn up inside. I figured you deserved it after the first episode of TDI, that you were the one person who deserved all the abuse.

"Well... Eva too," she admitted, "but I'm such a coward, I couldn't insult her to her face; I think she'd kill me."

"Considering she almost killed me a couple days ago," Ezekiel said, "I doo'nt blame you, eh."

Bridgette managed to smile at this, but it was gone soon. "Courtney's been so furious nowadays, and Geoff's been so caring but anxious to renew what we had going... so when you were here in this hot tub... I lost it. I really, really lost it, and I cannot believe it. I wanted to relax, but I couldn't even wear my favorite wet suit because it reminded me of better times...

"It was like an out-of-body experience when I saw you. The next thing I knew, I was watching this mad woman screaming at you in my voice. You didn't deserve that, I don't think anyone did, not even Duncan."

She took another deep breath. "Although... I was really weirded out when I saw Izzy moaning my name and dry-humping the wall."

"E-Scope was, um, giving me dating tips," Ezekiel explained, "and she got carried away."

"She does do that," Bridgette said, a dry chuckle escaping her lips.

They were quiet for some time. Ezekiel was unsure what to do or say, he really felt that he was not experienced enough to know how to react to all this. Luckily for him, Bridgette solved this by letting out a very long, relieved groan.

"I cannot tell you how good it feels to tell someone about this," she said amid some laughter. "Oh man, part of that giant weight on my shoulders is gone."

"Glad to help, eh," Ezekiel said, smiling at her.

"I still don't know how I'm going to talk to Geoff and Courtney about this, but I feel so much better. You won't tell anyone, will you?"

"I promise not to, eh."

"Not even E-Scope?"

"Not even her, eh. You can pretend to keep hating me so that no one suspects anything, eh."

"No, Ezekiel," she said, frowning. "I'm not going to let you stay isolated. I helped encourage the others to not talk to you back then, and now I really feel bad about that."

She reached over and hugged him. "Do you forgive me? I've done a lot of bad things in spite towards you."

"Of course I forgive you," he said. He returned the hug, patting her shoulder blade. When she let go, she smiled at him.

"I think I know how to thank you for hearing me out," she said. "Izzy was giving you dating tips, right?"

"Yeah."

"Do you like her?"

"Yes," he said smiling, scratching the back of his head. "She's really something else, isn't she?"

Bridgette giggled. "I think of the six billion people on Mother Earth, not one is as unique as Izzy."

"Yeah. So... wait, you're going to try to set me up with Izzy?"

"I can try. I helped hook up some of my friends with whom they're dating, I think I can help you and Izzy, so long as you promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Don't go to second base with her like she was showing you, and don't let her do that to you either. If you take a relationship slow, it can be really great."

Ezekiel chuckled. "I doo'nt think I would have the nerve to try and go to... what is second base, eh?"

Bridgette thumped her chest. "Up here."

He looked at her there, then realized she was wearing a bikini and her body was still wet. He blushed and looked away, stammering, "Um, okay, eh."

She chuckled and said, "Yeah, don't look at her boobs when you talk to her."

"That's actually not hard to do, she has gorgeous green eyes."

"I know, most of the girls here want those eyes, including me," Bridgette said. She poked him in the head to get him to look back at her. "Tomorrow, why not set up a date? Say, dinner?"

"Why not breakfast, eh?"

"Well, breakfast isn't as romantic as dinner. Breakfast is the meal everyone eats when they're struggling to wake up."

"Okay, eh, but what do I say to her?"

Bridgette grinned, looking at him slyly. "You just be yourself, Ezekiel."

* * *

The next morning, Izzy came into Ezekiel's room, holding a mop in her hands. She walked over to his bed, where he was waking up slowly.

"Wake up completely, sleepy head," she said as she watched him sit up. "I let you sleep in until six AM, that okay?"

"Sure, but why are you here, eh?"

"I am gonna protect you from the others, I've made that my duty," she said, standing at attention and saluting. "E-Scope the Bodyguard, at your service!"

"What's this a'boot, E-Scope?"

"Geoff, Bridgette, and Courtney did not look very pleased after they saw me giving you dating tips, and I think they might have focused the blame on you, since they know I have access to weapons."

"Like that mop?"

"Like this mop. If any of them give them trouble, I'll hit them in the face with this mop! And it smells like dirt!"

Izzy chewed on a strand to prove her point. "Yee-uck," she said approvingly. "Well, I can tell you now, I won't hit Bridgette, even if she gets mad at you."

"Let's just head doo'n for breakfast, eh," Ezekiel said as he got out of bed. "Oh, E-Scope?"

"Mmmm. Yeah?"

"There's something... uh, can you spit out that strand from the mop first, eh?"

P-tooie. "There. Now what's up, my Zeke?"

"There's something I'd like to ask you at breakfast."

"Ooo, a surprise! Can you tell me now?"

"Well no, because I gotta get changed first."

Izzy pursed her lips. "Aww phooey. I suppose you'll want me to leave the room when you do that."

* * *

At breakfast, Izzy was wolfing down bacon and pancakes. She had coated it all in ketchup, which turned Ezekiel's stomach a little. He suspected she did it for the after effects of having the red substance smeared over and around her mouth, looking like a carnivore who'd just got her prey.

"Do I have ketchup on my face?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Goody," she said as she ate some more bacon. "So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

"Well, remember yesterday when you were giving me suggestions on asking a girl 'oot?"

"Yes, I do. That was fun, but I should have seen if the girl I was smooching had a friend for you."

Ezekiel chuckled. "Well, I was wondering...," he cleared his throat and said, "Would you... like to go 'oot for dinner tonight, eh?"

Izzy chewed on her food for a couple seconds, then she paused. Swallowing slowly, she stared into Ezekiel's eyes. "Are... are you asking me out?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Me? You wanna go to dinner with me?"

"Yes, eh."

Izzy was quiet for a few seconds, then she let out a wild cry of joy. This startled Ezekiel, but not as much as when threw herself over the table and tackled him, knocking him onto his back.

"You're asking me out! E-Scope is so happy," she cooed, nuzzling his cheeks. She sat up and said, "But you were supposed to ask me out to coffee or tea first!"

"I didn't think you'd drink caffeine, eh."

"Ah, touché," she said. She grabbed a napkin from the table and wiped the ketchup on his face that she smeared on. "So where did you want to go?"

"Well, there was this nice restaurant nearby that I think you may like, eh."

"Do they have ketchup?"

"Maybe. I could always ask before we go, eh."

"I can live without ketchup, but it'd make me more happy," she giggled as she leaned over him. "Should I wear a dress?"

"Um, it's not fancy of a restaurant, E-Scope."

"Aww, but I really wanted to wear a dress! Something wicked like I would wear at my prom! That is, if the principal of my school decides to lift the ban; I apologized countless times for that chemistry class incident, but..."

Izzy clasped her hands. "I gotta go find Bridgette! She's gonna help me find a dress for my first date with my Zeke!"

With a happy squeal, she bolted off. Ezekiel sat up, and smiled.

"Well, that went pretty well, eh," he said to himself.

"Yeah, we think so too!"

Ezekiel looked around to see Cody sitting at a table with Katie and Sadie, the three of them waving and grinning at him.

* * *

Bridgette was in the hotel lounge with Geoff, Courtney, and Tyler. The four former Killer Bass were discussing their future plans after they were finally done with Total Drama. Geoff had his arm around Bridgette's shoulders, and the surfer girl seemed more relaxed and happy than she had been.

"I think I'm going to study human psychology and politics," Courtney explained. "It's important to know how your opponents think when you're campaigning them."

"What if they bring up footage from TDI as an attack ad against you, dudette?" Tyler asked.

"Oh please, that'd be such a cheap shot," she scoffed. "Well, what are you going to do, Tyler? Go to college on a sports scholarship?"

There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice, but Tyler didn't notice it. "Yeah, I think that's the way I want to go," he said, leaning back in his chair. "I love sports a helluva lot, so if I cannot make it as an athlete, I'll try something like a sports journalist or announcer."

"Could you get us free tickets?" Geoff asked.

"For sure, man."

"Awesome."

The lobby exploded with noise all of a sudden, when a whooping Izzy burst into the room. She spotted Bridgette, squealed her name happily, and ran towards her. She jumped on a rug and slid on it right to the surfer, glomping the surfer with the momentum of the sliding rug.

"My Zeke asked me out," Izzy cried, hugging Bridgette.

"What?" was all the startled surfer could say.

"Zeke asked me out at breakfast this morning, here in the hotel, today, in this hour," she went on, standing up and lifting the surfer girl up. "I'm gonna need your help picking out a dress!"

"Whoa, Home School is taking you some place nice?" Geoff asked, smiling at Izzy.

"Not really, but I really want to look nice for him," the redhead said. She grabbed Bridgette's shoulders and said, "What say you, Bridgette? Can you help me out, huh, can you, can you, can you?"

"Hold it right there." Courtney was standing up and glaring at Izzy. "You mean to tell me that you were not only talking to that sexist, but you accepted him asking you out?"

"Yess'um," Izzy said, nodding her head happily.

"That is _completely_ unacceptable," the CIT shouted. "We are shunning him! You dare go against what we all agreed to?"

"Courtney, please," Bridgette said pleadingly to her friend. "Ezekiel is not that bad of a person, really."

"Now _you're_ defending him?!" she shouted. "Argh! I can't stand this!"

The mocha-skinned girl stormed out of the lobby, leaving the others a little stunned.

Tyler was the first to recover. "Well, dudettes, if you chicks are gonna get Izzy looking nice for her date with Home School, I'm gonna go get him to look good!"

Bridgette sighed as she tried to get over her friend angrily storming out on them. She managed to smile at Izzy and said, "Sure thing, E-Scope." She turned to her boyfriend and said, "Wanna help us out, Geoff?"

"You're on, babe," he said, grinning right back at her.

* * *

**(Warning, contents are maturing.)**

Ezekiel coughed, hacked, gagged, and fought hard not to lose his lunch. His eyes watered as he doubled over, moaning in pain.

"Dude, jeez, fine," Tyler said. "I'll pick a different cologne."

Tyler rummaged through his things as Ezekiel collapsed on the bed. The jock had caught him, saying that he had made it his mission to prepare the prairie boy for his date. When Tyler suggested cologne, Ezekiel wasn't even sure he knew what it was.

"It sounds like perfume for men, eh," he had grumbled.

"Dude, we have to smell nice for them too! Girls love nice smells, you'll learn that."

Tyler was confident that Izzy was like most other girls in many senses. Though he knew how different she was, the brunet jock was sure Izzy would appreciate what most girls really dug in men.

"Trust me on this, I've been dating before Lindsay," Tyler was telling Ezekiel as he continued to rummage through his stuff, trying to find another of his cologne bottles. "Through trial and error, first base to third, I know what really works and really doesn't."

"Have you had a lot of girlfriends?"

"Well, I wouldn't say a lot, dude. A few, I can say that. A couple really crashed and burned, but the others I'm still friends with. Plus, I got friends who are girls back home, guy friends with girlfriends, and a couple sisters."

He found another bottle of cologne and handed it to Ezekiel. "Lindsay is awesome, though, she really tops the list. I hope she wins TDA, she so could."

"Doesn't she come from a rich family?" Ezekiel asked as he sniffed the cologne. This one was a lot more pleasing.

"Yeah, but if she wins, she wins the money on her own! A million dollars hard-earned," Tyler cheered, pumping his fists into the air. "Man, I wish I could be in that contest right now. Keep Justin and Owen away from her..."

His eye began to twitch, and his fingers curled. "If either of them try something with her..."

"Whoa man, calm down, eh," Ezekiel instructed him.

Tyler took a deep breath and sighed. "It's cool, I'm cool. Right then, dude, I'm gonna give you some advice on dating.

"You gotta offer to pay. If she insist she pays, split the tab. Waiter gets fifteen percent of the total as a tip unless he or she is rude; more as a tip if you guys give him or her a hard time."

"I'm sure we won't be rude, eh."

"Well, you can never tell with Izzy, dude," Tyler said with a chuckle, patting Ezekiel's shoulder.

"That's true, I guess."

"Now dude, you gotta tell her how great she looks, but be honest. If her dress makes you want to take her right there and then, say she looks sexy. If it's gorgeous, say she looks beautiful. If it's a hideous choice, say she sure looks different.

"Don't make the first move when you get back to the hotel tonight. If she wants you to kiss her goodnight, she'll hesitate. And dude, don't think for a second you are going to score or get to third base or something. That only happens in the movies, girls are not jumping in bed with guys on the first date."

"Why do they always do that in the movies, eh?"

"My guess is because the movie is only an hour and a half, so they gotta add the sex scene in there somewhere. So just be careful with Izzy, dude, I'm sure she would beat your ass if she didn't want you to make a move when she doesn't want it."

"My, how comforting."

"Now we're gonna have to get you a tuxedo for tonight," Tyler said, standing up and punching his palm. "I know a nearby place, so let's get moving and-"

Something slammed against the wall in the next room, startling both Tyler and Ezekiel. Before either could call out, they heard some really hot panting and slurping sounds.

"The hell?" Tyler whispered to Ezekiel, who shrugged.

"Oh Noah," a husky female voice moaned in the next room. "Careful, Tyler might be in his room."

"He's probably at the gym here or the pool, or sobbing that he doesn't have Lindsay's boobs to squeeze," was the reply from who was obviously Noah.

"Ooo, I love it when you talk dirty."

It was fairly difficult to comprehend what they were saying, since both were talking in low tones, and they were kissing so much that their words came out wet and rushed.

Tyler's eyes bulged when he realized who was macking in the next room. He looked at Ezekiel incredulously and pointed at the wall. The prairie boy shrugged.

"I've been waiting for this for too long," Eva was purring. There was the sound of more kissing, and clothes rustling.

"It's only been about two days, Eva."

"That's too damn long!"

More clothes rustling, then the sound of cloth hitting the floor. They were starting to really grunt and moan, the sound of one of them writhing up and down against the wall.

"Say, you're a D-cup," Noah said, a humorous tone in his voice. "Nice."

"Stop staring at my bra and suck on my girls, damn it!"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, still humorous and husky at the same time.

Tyler bit his finger when the sounds of wet slurping followed. Ezekiel was bright red in the face by now. Eva was moaning and thumping the wall, probably with her fist.

"Careful, Iron Woman, you'll punch a hole through the wall."

"Less talking, more... ngggh!... sucking, Noah."

This kept up for a couple minutes, Eva moaning and her voice getting high in pitch. Tyler pulled on his jacket collar and swallowed hard.

"Okay, lover boy," Eva purred, "Time for me to pay you back for that."

The sound of a zipper going down could be heard. Ezekiel swallowed hard, then muttered, "Um, Tyler, we should probably be going."

He stood up and headed for the door. The prairie boy had to come back and grab Tyler by his jacket collar and pull him out of the room.

* * *

**End of Part 3.**

* * *

--

--

--

So how is the date between Ezekiel and Izzy going to go? With what's been bother Bridgette finally out, will her morale improve or degrade? And just how many people are going to know about Eva and Noah before the two finally admit they're dating?

I'd just like to clear up a couple things. I do _not_ hate Duncan, I'm actually quite fond of him. Bridgette's anger for him is just for drama and story. And I don't hate Courtney either, she's just good at being an antagonist (don't worry, she isn't going to screaming angry throughout the whole story).


	4. Dinner Disaster and Battle Scars

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Izzy and Ezekiel's looks are inspired by minako25's drawings from Deviant Art.

Also, there's nothing that is sexy mature in this chapter. You have my apologies.

* * *

**Chapter 4** - You Don't Wanna Know How I Got These Scars

* * *

Izzy bobbed up and down on her yellow shoes, her green dress swishing around her. She began nervously fidgeting with the little flowers on her dress, which were outlining a diamond pattern on the skirt.

"Don't do that, E-Scope, you might rip them off," Bridgette told her.

"You sure? They seem to be on pretty tight," Izzy remarked, still fidgeting with one.

"What are those flower things, anyway?" Geoff asked, looking at Izzy's dress closely. "They just jewelry or something?"

"I think they're fasteners," Bridgette remarked.

"Maybe they're sequins?" guessed Izzy.

"Bobbles?" guessed Geoff.

"Frogs?" guessed Bridgette.

" 'Frogs'?!" Geoff and Izzy replied, looking incredulously at her.

"That's what decorations on a dress are called sometimes," the surfer girl explained.

Geoff stared blankly at her. Izzy was giggling, then she pulled up the top of her dress. "Whoops, don't want my boobs falling out," she said as she straightened the transparent straps on the top. "That would be horrible on the first date."

"Well, hasn't he already seen your butt?" Geoff asked. When Bridgette shot him a disapproving look, he quickly added, "I mean that time you lost your bikini bottom at Playa des Losers during TDI."

"I dunno if he saw it, he was busy watching you two make out," Izzy said, shrugging. "But hasn't Bridgette seen your butt, Geoff?"

"Oh yes," Bridgette remarked, rolling her eyes. "The time he mooned Gwen and I to show me his butt tattoo."

"I might get me a butt tattoo, or maybe a pin stripe on my lower back," Izzy said, trying to look down at her butt. She started spinning in circles, trying to catch a view of it. "No, never mind, I don't want a tattoo that I couldn't see on myself."

"I might get me a tattoo one day," Bridgette admitted. "Maybe a dolphin or a large wave. Something that really defined me."

"Maybe the sun, then?" Geoff suggested. "Because you're really, really hot!"

Bridgette and Izzy giggled. "Nice of you to say that, Geoff," Bridgette said. "Very corny, but nice."

She walked over and gave her boyfriend a kiss on the cheek. Geoff grinned, and then said, "Well, it's fun to flirt and chat, but where is Ezekiel?"

"They should be back soon, Tyler took them to get him a tuxedo," Bridgette said. "He's also going to be their ride to the restaurant and back."

"Ooo, I hope he's an awesome driver," Izzy said, swaying back and forth again. "He likes sports, maybe it's a race car!"

"Naw, it's just a normal car his dad sent over when we got here," Geoff explained. "Tyler's dad is really well connected, so it is a pretty set of wheels."

"Sweet," Izzy said. "Always awesome to arrive in style."

"I didn't know Tyler came from a rich family," Bridgette mused. "He doesn't seem like it."

"Well, his folks are divorced, and he and his sisters live with his dad," Geoff explained to her.

"With his dad?" his girlfriend asked. "That's unusual."

"Yeah, well, um," Geoff scratched the back of his head, and whispered, "He told me his mom turned out to be, um, a real tramp, and bolted right after getting her share of the divorce. Tyler hasn't seen her since the divorce."

"Ohhh, poor guy," Bridgette said. She felt bad for Tyler, since the surfer girl had a deep connection with her mother, and couldn't imagine someone having such a terrible mother.

"What a bitch," Izzy mused. "Ditching her family, probably only married him for his money. Sounds like something a real snob would do."

Bridgette frowned at the redhead, while Geoff nodded. "Cha, like Heather," the party animal said.

"What about Heather?"

The three leapt into the air when Tyler walked up to them. He cocked his head to the side as all three began stammering nervously.

"Nothing, Tyler, nothing important," Bridgette remarked.

"Just trash-talking the bitch," Izzy informed him.

As Bridgette glared at her, Tyler chuckled and said, "Ready to meet your date, E-Scope? And by the way, you look gorgeous, babe!"

"Awww, shucks," Izzy said, drawing circles with her toes. "But let me see my Zeke!"

"Okay," Tyler said, then turned around. "Hey Zeke, your lady's ready! And before you are!"

Ezekiel peeked from behind the corner, his toque still on but placed on well-brushed hair. With a nervous swallow, he came out looking very nervous.

Whichever of the boys had picked Ezekiel's look obviously wanted something plain. The prairie boy was wearing an olive green jacket with a white collar shirt underneath, a yellow tie dangling from around his neck. His blue jeans had been replaced by black pants, and he was wearing shiny black shoes rather than his sneakers.

"You don't look half-bad, Home School," Geoff called out as he approached.

"Thanks," Ezekiel said quietly, "I..."

He stopped when he saw Izzy. The prairie boy stared at her for a few seconds, and could only manage to say, "Oh wow."

"That good, huh?" Izzy asked, drawing more circles with her toes before posing. "How do you like my frogs, Zeke?"

"Um, what?"

"Never mind, I didn't get the dress for the frogs, I got it because it is the color of frogs," she explained, then approached him. "And you look quite handsome!"

"Th-thank you," he said, his face bright red.

"Your jacket's not bad," she said, her face dusted pink. "Kind of a frog-like color."

Geoff was suppressing some major laughter as Bridgette shook her head. Tyler also was holding back laughter as he patted Ezekiel and Izzy on the shoulders.

"You two ready for your first date?"

"As ready as I can be," Izzy said, nodding a great many times.

Ezekiel nodded too, smiling at Izzy. She grinned back at him, making his face flush just a little more.

"Shame you two are going to miss the next episode of TDA," Tyler said. "But oh well, we'll let you know who gets voted off."

He led the two to where he parked his car. Ezekiel and Izzy sat in the back as Bridgette and Geoff waved them good-bye.

"They look so happy," Geoff said as the sleek, red car drove off.

"I know, I feel so happy for them," Bridgette said.

They were quiet for a few seconds before the party animal said, "I bet ten bucks that one of them comes back with food stains all over them."

"I'll bet fifteen they both come back like that," the surfer girl replied. They shook hands, exchanged a kiss, then started to head back to the hotel.

Both were surprised to see Courtney standing there, a very unpleasant frown on her face. "I really wish you two wouldn't support those two," she said to them.

"C'mon, Courtney," Geoff said, smiling at the CIT. "We're all in this together, stuck under the same roof, forced to be together while the show goes on. Might as well try to be cool and hang out, right?"

The CIT rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Not with a sexist redneck and a certifiably insane girl."

* * *

"Your table is right this way, sir and madam," the matrie'd said, escorting Ezekiel and Izzy. The man's polite smile was enforced by the sight of the redheaded girl with her arm linked with his, and a shy blush on the toque-wearing brunet.

"_Ah, young love_," he thought as they seated themselves. "_Still, there's something a'boot that redhead that makes me nervous. Hope she doesn't cause any trouble, eh._"

Ezekiel and Izzy began to flip through their menus. "Just don't ask the waiter 'what do you have'?" Izzy said. "That makes it sound like you want him to read the menu to you."

"Thanks," he said. "Never bin to a restaurant befur, eh."

"It's really fun. This one time I was at a restaurant, the waitress got this really large spider crawling up her leg, and she was serving a flambé meal, so when I tried to swat the spider for her, it caught the drapes on fire!"

The matrie'd overheard this. "_Oh crap. This could be a night, eh._"

The waitress approached them. She was a cute and young girl, her brown hair done up in odango buns. "Hello, I'm Erika," she said, "I'll be your waitress today, eh."

"Hello, Erika. I'm E-Scope, that's Ezekiel, and we'll be your customers today," Izzy said cheerfully.

Erika smiled, then she looked surprised. "Wait a minute. Aren't you two on that show-"

Izzy brought up her finger to her lips. "Shhh, shhh, shhh, Erika. No need to bring in the paparazzi."

"All right then," their waitress said with a polite nod, "Can I get you anything befur you order, eh?"

The redhead giggled as she perused the menu. "You know what I'm hungry for? Pancakes and bacon! It will remind me of when my Zeke asked me out!"

Ezekiel blushed, but Erika looked worried. "Um, soo'ry hon, but the cook prefers not to make breakfast items around the evening, eh."

Izzy pouted. "Aww phooey."

Her date cleared her throat and gestured for Erika to come to him as Izzy looked gloomily at her menu. "Will this be enough," he whispered to the waitress as he fished out his wallet, "to convince the cook to make what she wants?"

He was holding a ten dollar bill. Erika blinked and smiled. "That's a lot, but okay, eh."

"Thank you, eh," he said as she took the money. "I'll make sure you get a nice tip. Oh, and please bring us a bottle of ketchup too."

"That's nice of you, Mr. Ezekiel," she said. "I'll go get you two some soda, then I'll be back to get your order, eh."

As she walked off, Izzy looked at Ezekiel with a sly smirk. "I thought you didn't know anything about restaurants. How did you know that would work?"

"Tyler gave me a few tips, eh," he explained. The prairie boy looked over at her, and he had a goofy smile on his face.

"What?" she asked, her face getting pink.

"I just cannot get over how beautiful you look tonight, eh; you look so good in that dress."

Izzy giggled, her facial flush getting red. "Thank you. I'm not much for dresses, they tend to tear or stain or get caught on fire when I wear them."

"Whoa, how?"

"My Zeke, you should know me well enough by now. I'm an adventurous gal, and billowy clothing like this just gets ruined. That's why super heroines never wear dresses."

"I see, eh. But you knoo'," he said, "I think you could still kick a lot of butt in that dress."

"You're so sweet. And you're probably right, but the dress would still end up as a mess, and I like this dress."

As Izzy and Ezekiel talked, another couple were seated at a table nearby them. Erika asked them for their order, and she received a curt order from the woman, "Ice water, and don't skimp on the ice, hon." "Right away, sir," she said as she headed off.

"So, Ezekiel," Izzy said, clasping her hands and resting her chin on said hands, "tell me about your family."

"Well, my parents are both economic teachers for high school. They met in college, second year. After they graduated, they were married a'boot half a year later, eh."

"So they knew each other for about four and a half years before getting married?" Izzy asked, looking surprised. "Whoa, that's a long time."

"College was really busy, and they're both are old-fashioned, eh. They think really getting to knoo' your partner befur you marry them is important."

"Four and a half years is a lot of time," Izzy remarked. "Wow, I really don't know if I could wait that long. I mean, after that long, wouldn't you know everything about that person?"

"Oh, I doo'nt knoo' a'boot that, eh," Ezekiel said, smiling. "They've bin married fur almost twenty years now, and they still discover... new things..."

Ezekiel was distracted because someone was snapping his fingers loudly. Both him and Izzy looked over at the source, which was the man of the couple nearby him. He was holding up his hand and snapping constantly, looking annoyed.

"What's he doing, eh?" Ezekiel asked Izzy.

His question was answered when Erika hurried over to the couple's table. "Yes, sir?"

"Right, hon," he said, opening the menu. "What do you people have?"

Izzy rolled her eyes and looked over at Ezekiel. "Told you. Sound like a real moron, huh?"

"Yeah, kind of."

Erika was listing the specials and staff recommendations, which only seemed to annoy the young man. "Never mind, hon," he said. "Just get us an appetizer."

"Any particular kind?"

"Whatever is most common."

"And this ice water has way too much ice," the woman complained. "Get rid of some of it, will you?"

As Erika took the glass and walked off, Ezekiel and Izzy exchanged looks. "They aren't being very polite, eh," the prairie boy remarked.

"Well, that's what you get when you work with the public. Stupid public," she said. "So, your parents have been married for twenty years, and they have you, a nice place on the prairie, and successful careers. Don't they ever get bored?"

"No, not really, eh. They're simple folk, so I guess I am too."

"Oh," Izzy looked a little disappointed. "Well... do you ever want to have a more active life?"

"Kind of," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "I mean, that's part of the reason I signed up fur the shoo', eh."

"Only to be voted off first, that must have sucked. Did you have fun at Playa des Losers, at least?"

"Actually... no, not really. I mean, I loved the hot tub, but that was a'boot it. The food was great too, eh."

As Izzy nodded and hummed, she gave Ezekiel a minute to look through the menu. When Erika came by to take his order, he was ready for her but the man at the nearby table was snapping his finger.

"I'll be with you in a minute, sir," Erika called to him.

"We are ready to order!"

"I'll be getting that soon, eh," Erika said, and turned back to Ezekiel. "Now what did you want?"

"I think I'll have the cheeseburger, eh."

"How would you like that cook-"

She was interrupted by more finger snapping. "Hey hon," the man at the nearby table called out, and pointed at his date.

"There is far too little ice in this drink," the woman snapped, glaring at Erika. "I told you not to skimp on it."

Izzy's eye was beginning to twitch. "She's with us," she called out.

The couple glared at her for a few seconds before turning back to each other. Erika looked like she was holding in a sigh as she said to Ezekiel, "How would you like that cooked, eh?"

"Whacha mean, eh?"

"Rare, medium, medium-well, well done."

"I think you'd prefer medium-well," Izzy said.

Ezekiel nodded towards Izzy, and Erika noted this down. After asking some other questions, she excused herself and headed over to the rude couple.

"Thank you, E-Scope," Ezekiel said to her. "How do you prefer your burger?"

"I like mine well done," she said, grinning. "It's like eating something that's been fragged or napalmed."

He wasn't really sure what that meant, but he figured he could ask Tyler or Bridgette later. "So, E-Scope, what's your family like?"

Izzy looked away and sighed. "I, um... it's not really that interesting."

"But... they're family, right?"

"I guess so," she said, shrugging. "Well, my mom is a doctor, my dad is a... museum curator, which is as boring as it sounds. I have three siblings, older brother and sister, and a younger sister. I somehow got red hair, despite none of my parents and grandparents having it."

"Ah, lost genetics."

"What?"

"Lost genetics are what my mom calls it when you have certain genetics that come from far back into your heritage. Someone far back on either side of your family probably had red hair way back, eh."

"Cool!"

"So, what is like having siblings, eh?"

Izzy blinked, then shrugged. "Oh, it's nothing cool. What's it like being an only child?"

Surprised by the sudden change of subject, Ezekiel pondered the question. He looked around, and noticed something.

"Whoa, Erika's still taking their order, eh."

Izzy noted this too. The man was still looking through his menu, while the woman was talking to the waitress.

"... and I want the tomatoes from the salad on the side, and I don't want it tossed but stirred. I also want the soup heated to exactly eighty-two degrees, and don't want chicken in it, I want turkey..."

Izzy fumed. "It'll take forever for our order to get to the kitchen." Ezekiel took a deep sigh, then he smiled at her. "What?"

"It gives us more time to chat, eh."

"That's true," she said, nodding. "So, about being an only child?"

"Oh right, eh! Well, there were a few times in my life that I really wanted a sibling. I mean, I really wanted to have someone around my age, or just be an older brother. But my parents were pretty adamant a'boot only having one kid, eh." He sighed. "I doo'nt knoo', I still think I'd like to have a younger sibling."

"Naw, siblings are no fun," Izzy said, shrugging. "But then again, if something breaks in the house, they might take the fall for it."

Ezekiel chuckled, and glanced over at Erika. The waitress was still with the rude couple, the man still reading his menu. He sighed, then smiled at her.

"So, what do you plan on doing after TDA, eh?"

"I think I'll be on the third season of Total Drama."

He laughed. "You think that too, eh?"

"Yep! And I really hope you're part of it this time, and that I last longer."

"Thanks, I hope both of those too, eh. But I'm pretty sure Chris Maclean doesn't like me."

"Oh, he's just an asshole. I'm sure he's far more of a sexist than you ever were; he leers at Lindsay."

"Whoa, really?"

"Yep. Then again, all the guys do."

"I doo'nt knoo', she's not really my type, eh."

"Not your type? Zeke, her boobs are bigger than your toque!"

Ezekiel shrugged. "Well, she is physically attractive, yes, and she is nice, but she's still not my type."

"You mean, you wouldn't date her?"

"Nah, I think I prefer a certain redhead with a wicked grin, eh."

She gave him that wicked grin. "Well, I prefer wild guys who provide a lot of fun. Someone really interesting."

Ezekiel wondered if he really was interesting enough for her. Izzy was wondering if he really wouldn't date Lindsay.

"_She is the hottest girl around_," she thought, "_but right now, she has Tyler and Owen fighting over her. He could get really bruised if he wanted her._"

* * *

"Oh man, Trent," Cody said as the ending credits rolled. The tech-geek collapsed back in his seat, and sighed. "Trent and Gwen... it's over? I cannot believe it."

"This is, like, so terrible, I cannot believe it either," Sadie declared, nodding at Cody then at Katie. "Isn't it terrible, Katie?"

"It's more than terrible, it's tragic," Katie wailed, hugging her best friend. "Oh Sadie, they broke up!"

"It was all Chris's fault," Sadie cried out, tears coming to her eyes. "He was out to get them! He wanted them to break up!"

"What a douche bag," Eva snarled. "He loved it, did you see his smile?"

"He even loved making Gwen feel bad," Geoff declared. "Man, that's so uncool, it's... it's anti-cool!"

"Well, I don't know if I approve of Gwen telling Trent's teammates to vote him off," Bridgette said, "but yes, Chris deserves to be smacked. Hard. What do you think, Courtney?"

Courtney was staring off into space, a dreamy smile on her lips. Noah waved a hand in front of her face.

"She's been like this ever since Duncan made that confession on why he's still bugging Harold," he remarked. "Nothing says romance like admitting you're bullying a guy for the girl you love."

Bridgette sighed and shrugged. "Well, Tyler, what do you think about Chris?"

Tyler was sitting in his chair, his arms crossed tightly and his breath coming out his nose in angry hisses.

"Dude?" Cody asked. "What's wrong?"

"Owen," the jock replied. "Owen was looking down Lindsay's towel."

"He was?" Geoff asked. "I must have missed that."

"That stupid, fat moron was trying to see my girlfriend naked," Tyler roared, startling everyone. "He's probably got Izzy's advice burned on his pea brain, he wants to grope Lindsay! If I ever get my hands on him, I'll-"

"You'll probably kill yourself trying to kill him," Eva remarked.

"He is bigger than you," Sadie pointed out.

"And he's murderous with a dodge ball," Katie added.

Tyler fumed and sulked back in his chair. Eva chuckled, and stood up. "Well chumps, I don't think I want to be around when the emo musician comes around, so I'll be off."

She gave Noah the briefest of looks, and then walked off. After about a minute, Noah cleared his throat and said, "You know, I'd hate to have to hear a sob story from him, and I don't to break the news to him, so I'm off too."

As headed off, the remaining ex-contestants began to talk amongst themselves. Only Cody was not talking, looking very crestfallen. Tyler kept look at where Eva and Noah walked off to.

"You know what?" the jock said. "I think I'm gonna hurry to my room too, until Izzy and Ezekiel call."

"Why 'hurry'?" Bridgette asked him.

"No reason, bye," Tyler declared as he bolted off, almost tripping in his haste.

* * *

It was about forty-five minutes since their arrival that Izzy and Ezekiel finally got their food. As Erika apologized profusely, the snapping of fingers could be heard from the table Izzy was now referring to as "Satan's Couple."

The young waitress headed over, trying her best to keep on a smile. "Yes, sir?"

"Hon, my steak isn't properly cooked. Send it back and have them do it right this time."

She nodded. Ezekiel and Izzy were watching this, and both noted how the woman was dumping the tomatoes she had ordered on the side right into the salad. She then sipped her soup and grimaced.

"This is way too hot, too," she remarked, glaring at Erika. "Didn't you tell them to heat to eighty-two degrees exactly?"

"I... I did, ma'am."

"Well, someone obviously got the order wrong, now didn't they?" She shoved the soup bowl angrily from her. "Take it back, get it right. Oh, and my ice water is way too warm, did you get it from a tap, or something?"

Izzy and Ezekiel exchanged glances. "You know what, my Zeke?" she said. "I am seriously contemplating throwing something at them."

"You pelt the woman, I'll get the guy?"

"Oh, by the way, toots," the man said, looking at the fries on his plate with disgust. "I didn't get ketchup with my fries."

"Um, I'm soo'ry, sir, but usually we only bring that 'oot if someone requests it, eh."

He gave the waitress a look that would have been appropriate if she had spat on his shoes. "You thought wrong. Get me some ketchup."

"Yes, sir."

When she gathered their items and started to walk away, he snapped his fingers. "Wait, where are you going?" he demanded to know.

"I'm... getting your food redone, sir."

"I asked for ketchup, hon."

"I'll be getting you some from the kitchen, eh."

The man looked over at Ezekiel and Izzy; both flinched upon being sighted. "Those two kids have a ketchup bottle," he said, pointing at them like a prosecutor would at a guilty defendant. "Just borrow theirs. Save you a trip to the kitchen; if you were smart, you would have thought of that, toots."

Izzy, Ezekiel, and Erika all thought the same thing: "_She/I was already going _to_ the kitchen, you jackass._"

"Come on now kids, be a sport," the man said, snapping his fingers at Izzy and Ezekiel, then beckoned with his hand. "Give some of that over."

Izzy grabbed the ketchup bottle, held it close to her, and growled loudly at him. Both he and his date leaned back, intimidated.

"Get your own, eh," Ezekiel added.

The man looked absolutely repulsed. He looked over at Erika, who shrugged and hurried on her way to the kitchen.

Izzy set the ketchup bottle back on the table and sighed. "Calling to us as if we were dogs," she snarled. "I cannot believe it."

"Yeah, I knoo'!"

"I mean, I howl at the moon and sometimes scratch myself behind the ear, but I'm no dog!"

Ezekiel nodded, not quite sure how to reply to this. Izzy went from raging mad to depressed as she poured more ketchup on her pancakes. Eating them, she looked at Ezekiel with pleading eyes.

"Zeke, I gotta ask. Would you really, _really_ not go out with Lindsay if she was available?"

Ezekiel looked right into those pleading eyes and said, "E-Scope, I would not go 'oot with Lindsay. When we were looking for the million dollar briefcase, she talked a'boot nothing but clothes, make-up, and fashion bags. I had never bin moo'r bored in my life."

"Gosh, really?"

"Yes, eh. They wouldn't talk to me either. I just had to listen to them go on and on a'boot every girlie thing that crossed Lindsay's mind. Errr, I mean, every thing a'boot fashion, eh! Soo'ry!"

Izzy blinked, then she laughed. "Oh, my Zeke, E-Scope knew what you meant. Don't be so quick to apologize."

He sighed and nodded. "Right. It wasn't that I didn't like her or Beth, they are nice. But I didn't like being ignored, eh."

"Being ignored is worse than being tortured."

As they continued to eat, Erika came back with the food for the rude couple. When she put it back, both of them were glaring at her as if she insulted their mothers.

"It's about time," the man snapped, prodding his steak with a fork.

"I'm soo'ry, sir."

"And this steak is still not cooked properly," he shouted after merely poking it a couple more times. "What's wrong with you knuckle-heads? Can't you get it right?"

"Oh, what's he want, eh?" Ezekiel whispered to Izzy. "For it to be blessed by a priest?"

"And my ice water glass is wet," the woman cried out as Izzy giggled. "There's water all over the sides! Did you give me a wet glass on purpose?"

"Listen here, toots," the man said, snapping his fingers at Erika while pointing at her sternly, "your manager is going to hear about this."

Erika had her knuckles to her lips and was starting to shake. The man threatening her was quite big, and his voice had grown very powerful. She could only nod in response.

"I doubt we'll ever come here again," the woman spat out. "You people cannot make a proper soup. How do you ruin soup?!"

"Not to mention," the man said, his eyes turning towards Izzy, "you have some of the biggest freaks as customers here."

Izzy snarled at him, narrowing her eyes. She was startled, however, when Ezekiel slammed his fist on their table and stood up. The prairie boy walked over to the rude couple's table, glaring at the man.

"What?" the man said, scoffing. "You want me to take it back?"

"Oh, I not only want you to take that back for insulting my friend," Ezekiel said, "I want you to apologize to this young lady too, eh."

He pointed at Erika, who's eyes were darting between the two rude people and the toque-wearing young man.

"I beg your pardon?" the man asked in a very low, angry voice.

"You've bin perfectly beastly to her this entire time, eh," Ezekiel said. "What with snapping your fingers, taking forever to decide, giving her complex and precise orders, ordering stuff on the side only to dump it right into the food, sending your order back over and over, delaying _our_ meal by constantly calling her over, and then insulting and threatening her!

"The only civil thing you've done so far to her is promise not to come back, eh!"

The man was heaving angry, and the woman was glaring daggers, razor-sharp and poison-tipped, at the prairie boy.

"Now, where I come from, there's a thing called etiquette, and neither of you have that, eh," Ezekiel said. "What you do with your order is your business, true, but you've seriously crossed the line when you insulted my friend. So take back your insult now, bud'day."

Behind him, Izzy let out a happy, proud cheer. "That's my Zeke," she cried out.

The man slammed his fist on the table, and stood up. Ezekiel lost a lot of his confidence when he saw the man about a foot taller than him.

"You have five seconds to sit back down, runt," the rude man snarled.

Ezekiel, though quite terrified inside, didn't back down. Before he could see the movement of the man's hand, he was punched right in the face, sending him sprawling on the floor with his eye throbbing and his head spinning.

"Now get out of my face," the man roared as customers gasped and gawked.

"Oh, you asked for it!"

The man looked around to see Izzy standing up, adjusting her green wrist band. "You did not just hurt my Zeke... you are gonna pay so bad, chumps... time's up for you...

"Let's do this," she shouted, and then launched herself at him, letting out a battle cry that shook the windows, rattled the tables, and sent a shiver down the man's spine before her fists and feet started to connect:

"**LEE-ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOY JEE-EEEEENKIIIIIIIIIINS!!!**"

* * *

At Playa des Losers 2, things were a little different (and by 'little', we mean 'a heckuva lot').

Trent had collapsed in a chair, sobbing miserably. The others had just showed him the recording of the episode where he was just voted off. Knowing that Gwen had told his team to vote him off, combined with the fact that they had broken up, it was all too much for the musician.

Courtney was holding his hand and Cody was rubbing his back as he continued to cry. Katie and Sadie were nearby as well, looking very sympathetic.

"I cannot believe it," Trent mumbled among his tears.

The CIT continued to massage his hand, looking over at Geoff and Bridgette. The blond couple shrugged, not knowing what to say or do.

This continued for a while. Tyler left to go get Izzy and Ezekiel eventually, looking rather annoyed as he came from downstairs.

Trent calmed down with the encouragement of his friends. Courtney, digging into her consoler training, helped the musician to his feet.

"Trent, I know it's not a good idea to go to bed when you're so upset, but you've had a really, really tedious day," she instructed him. "You should really go to bed; we can talk about this tomorrow morning."

The musician nodded and started to walk to his room. Courtney, Katie, Sadie, and Cody went with him.

Geoff and Bridgette, left alone, exchanged glances. "He's really taking it bad," the surfer girl said.

"Man, this is really heavy and deep," Geoff said, trying to be heavy and deep. Unfortunately, his vocabulary wasn't very wide.

"You think Gwen did the wrong thing?"

"Well, Trent was throwing the challenges, and he was getting all... crazy with that nine stuff," Geoff said, rubbing his temples. "Nine this, nine that. Plus the whole branding thing, yick."

The party man tapped his fingers together and said, "So, um, if branding isn't romantic, is a tattoo?"

Bridgette rolled her eyes. "No, Geoff."

"Oh good. I'll remember that."

Their conversation was cut short when Tyler ran into the lobby, looking frantic. "Guys! Guys, get a first-aid kit and an ice pack, stat!"

The blond couple was completely caught off-guard until they saw Ezekiel and Izzy walk in. Both of them were rustled and dirty. The prairie boy had a black eye with bloody scratches on his face, and Izzy's dress and hair were an absolute wreck.

"What in the name of Chuck Norris happened to you two?" Geoff shouted, springing up from his chair.

Bridgette immediately went to the two, studying Ezekiel's eye wound before hurrying off to the medical room. Geoff was studying Izzy more so.

"Oh man," he commented. "Oh dear. Oh heavens, oh stars, oh good gumdrops."

Izzy was grinning at this, rocking on her feet. "Wow, you've got a lot of exclamations. How about holy torpedoes, saints, leaping lizards, and hawaiian shirts?"

"Bridgette and I were betting you'd all get food on yourselves, but this, man... hot pockets," Geoff remarked. "What happened?"

"Ezekiel came to my honor," Izzy cried out, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "Some jerk insulted me during our date!"

"Whoa, Home School, really dude?" Ezekiel chuckled, wincing and winking his bad eye. "Well, that guy knocked me down with one hit. Then Izzy tore him a'pert, eh."

"I beat the ever-loving crap out of him, and his prissy date," Izzy cheered, pumping her fists in the air, one of the flowers on her dress falling off. "They both tried to beat me up, but I kicked and punched, I socked them in the eye, kneed their groins, gave 'em noogies and purple-nurples... and she had smaller nips than he did!"

Izzy whooped again, slapping Ezekiel on the back. "What a wonderful date!"

Bridgette came back with an ice pack and held it to Ezekiel's eye. He cried out in pain at first, then held it close. "Oh, this really hurts, eh."

She opened up the first-aid kit, and started applying an alcohol wipe to his scratches. As he whimpered and hissed, she kept asking how it happened.

"It could have gone a lot better, eh," he admitted.

"No way, I had a great time," Izzy insisted. "Ezekiel, you were so awesome! You stood up for me, you told off that creep! And I loved talking to you!"

She looked down at her dress, which was torn, dirty, and most of the design flowers on it had been ripped off. "You think they'll take this dress back?"

"I doubt it, E-Scope," Bridgette said as she moved towards the redhead.

Izzy turned out to be a bigger baby over the alcohol rubs than Ezekiel, as she wailed and swatted at Bridgette's hands. Tyler got hit by one of Izzy's flailing arms as the redhead struggled.

"Gosh," Geoff said for about the fifth time. "So Bridgette, who wins the bet, since they're like this?"

"There's no food on them, so I think we both lost."

"Awww, you bet we'd spill food on each other?" Izzy asked. "That's lame, you should have set your sighs a little higher."

After Bridgette tended to their wounds a little bit longer, Izzy leaned against Ezekiel happily. "Now don't kick yourself, Ezekiel," she said. "I enjoyed myself."

"I enjoyed myself too, eh," he admitted. "I mean, it was great to talk to you, and to eat 'oot."

"Yeah but next time, dudes," Tyler said, eyeing them and wincing at the sight of Ezekiel's black eye, "I can suggest some places. Or maybe we could all go to a sports game or something."

"You two may need to get some sleep," Bridgette suggested. "It's late, and I'm sure after being in a fight, you two must be exhausted."

"Well, Izzy was actually doing all the fighting, eh," Ezekiel admitted. "I was pretty much on the floor half-blind as she smacked them around."

"So modest," Izzy cooed.

* * *

Izzy, carrying the first-aid kit, and Ezekiel walked up to their floor. The redhead was having a lot of fun describing the fight to the prairie boy, throwing a few air punches and miming other violent actions.

"Where'd you learn to fight like that?" Ezekiel asked her.

"Oh, my siblings, school, some military training, and a lot of fighting video game reenactments."

Izzy stopped in front of her door. She spun around and grinned at him. "So, this was your first date, right?"

"Right, eh."

"What did you think, Home School?"

Ezekiel rubbed the ice pack around his black eye. "I had fun."

"Really? I mean, you're the one with the shiner."

"The what?"

"The black eye."

"Oh! Well, I could do with'oot it, eh, but I really did enjoy talking to you. You were awesome."

Izzy grinned and drew a circle with her toes. "Was I, really?"

"Yeah, E-Scope, you were! I mean, you really kicked their deserving butts, you, um, claimed them, eh!"

"I what?"

"Claimed them... um... wait, that's not the word. Um, it's something like claim... possess, own..."

"That's the word you are looking for! Yeah, I owned them," she declared. "I haven't kicked someone's ass like that since... well, the last time I was at a restaurant."

"You get in a fight at restaurants often?"

"No," Izzy said, then looked up in thought. "Well... kind of. Actually, yes. I think I've got in a fight every time I've gone to one.

"Gee, that's a terrible pattern. I hope you win all the fights?"

"You know it, Shortie Prairie Boy," she said, fiddling with the bobble on his toque. He flushed slightly, smiling at her with his mouth and one good eye.

"I have to ask, now that I know how you got that injury," she said, nodding at his eye, "how'd you get the other scars?"

"Oh, you mean these?" Ezekiel pointed to his chin and then the right-back side on his neck.

"Yep!"

"Well, the one on the back of my neck is where Eva's fingernails dug in when she throttled me the first day off," he said. "I had to get it looked at after I was voted off, I had dried blood there, eh."

"Ewww. I hate that, not realizing I have an injury and only find out when blood appears on my fingers or my clothes."

He nodded. "The scar on my chin was during a spelling bee, eh."

Izzy giggled, then stared at his eyes. "Oh, wow... you got beat up during a spelling bee?"

"Yeah. When the two in second and third place started insulting me and I retorted, they ambushed me. That girl started hitting me with her trophy, and she cut me there, pretty good."

Izzy was trying not to laugh, but was letting out several giggles. "Beat up during a spelling bee. Ouch."

"Well, she was armed," he said, stroking the hair on his chin. "I started to grow my hair out here to cover the scar, but I grew fond of it and decided to keep it that way."

Izzy reached out and stroked his chin. "It is cute. So, want to know how I got my scars?"

"Which ones, eh?"

"You know which ones. I know you were checking me out when you were carrying me back to the hotel a couple days ago."

He swallowed nervously. "Yeah, I... did notice, eh. And I also noticed you have a cute belly button."

He gasped when he realized what he had just said aloud. Izzy burst out laughing and grinned at him. "You carry a girl in her arms, and you don't notice her boobs, her panties, her legs, her butt; you just look at her belly button!"

The prairie boy giggled and dug a circle with his toes like she would do. Izzy rocked back and forth on her feet, swinging the first-aid kit.

"Well this," she said, pointing at the surgical scar on her neck, "is where I had a chip implanted in me. My parents told me it was a tracking device so that they can always find me; they're a little paranoid I might get lost or something.

"Wanna feel it?" she said, rubbing her finger around her neck. He reached forward, and indeed felt something hard and square underneath her skin.

"Cool, huh?" Izzy said. "Well, I got a few cuts that I'm really proud of! This one on my back," she said as she turned and pointed at the right side of the middle of her back, "is when I fell back on the side of the locker at school. I had this bloody gash, and the school had to order new lockers because they were declared a danger!

"This one right here," she said, point to one on her left arm, "I was writing with a mechanical pencil, and when I was trying to get more lead out, I was shaking it and jammed it right in my arm!"

Ezekiel winced as Izzy mimed this. "Yeah, it went deep in, and I was really lucky the lead didn't break off," she insisted, "but mostly because the pencil was out of lead."

"Real lucky, eh."

"Yeah! Now the one on my right leg, I accidentally dropped a pocket knife when juggling it; the one on my right shoulder is when I tried to chew on an itch when I was six and cut the flesh with one of my teeth; the one on my left was when I was dramatically stabbing a pitchfork down, and it went down right on my foot.

"And this one is really cool," she said as she tucked the first-aid kit under her arm and started fiddling with her dress. Ezekiel's eyes went wide as Izzy began to pull the top of her dress to the side, exposing most of her breast. Though she was careful, he did, very briefly, see her nipple.

"This right here," she said, pointing to a scar that was close to the areola of her nipple, "was when I was trying to save this rat from the school bully; he was trying to kill it, so I grabbed it and held it close to me. The poor thing was so frightened that it bit my chest, really latching on. I was really young at the time, but I really freaked out my mom when she saw me with wet blood there on my shirt."

Ezekiel gawked, then shook his head and managed to bring his eyes up to her's. He couldn't help but think about how he just saw a good deal of her breast, so he tried to force himself to think of something else.

"How'd the rat end up, eh?"

"Oh," Izzy looked sad as she corrected her dress, "dad killed it when I brought it home."

"I'm soo'ry to hear that. You took a serious injury and risked a bully's wrath for its sake."

"Well, I kind of took my frustration out on the bully. He looked really bad when I was done with him, and I don't think he ever tried to steal anyone's lunch money ever again."

Izzy cackled, and then lifted up her dress to expose her legs. "And the burn on my left leg was when I was trying to cook. There was something burning on the stove and something burning on the oven.

"As I was opening the oven and trying to get the smoke out, I tried to kick the gauge on the stove to turn it off. I accidentally stuck my leg in the fire, burned my favorite shorts too."

Ezekiel winced and shuddered. "Wow. You are, like, the toughest human being I knoo', eh."

"Really?"

"Yeah! My dad's hunting buddies, those spelling bee bullies, even my mom!"

"Most people just call me a psycho hose-beast when I tell 'em about my injuries, eh."

"Aw, no way. I think it's awesome how you can flaunt them; I mean, I'm ashamed of mine."

"Well, the spelling bee scar was a little funny," she admitted. "You should just say she threw the trophy at you after you kicked her butt."

Ezekiel nodded at her as she grinned at her. There was a pregnant pause as they stared into each other's eyes.

Something clicked in Ezekiel's mind of what Izzy said yesterday: "_If a girl is looking at you romantically, at you, and there's a pregnant pause, she wants you to fill in that pause by smooching her!_"

The prairie boy took a deep breath and a small step forward. Izzy seemed to sense what he was attempting to do, because her eyes lit up and her face was turning pink. She clasped her hands over her heart (still holding the first-aid kit).

He removed the ice pack from his eye, then nervously put it back when he thought about how bad it might look. Izzy giggled, very light, and whispered, "I don't mind the shiner, my Zeke."

Chuckling nervously (very nervously), he held the ice pack behind his back and leaned in, propping his hand on the door behind her. He leaned in slowly as she puckered up.

They kissed, so light at first it was like palpitating their lips. Izzy leaned in closer for a second kiss, and Ezekiel managed to summon enough courage to push forward during their third kiss.

After the third, last, and definitely best kiss was over, the two stared into each other's eyes. "Not bad, my Zeke."

"Thanks... you have really soft lips, you knoo' that?"

"I haven't been told that before, but I'll take your word for it." She laughed, wiggling her shoulders a bit. "This is so damn romantic," she added.

"Yeah, it really is."

"I think it's time to turn in, though. You nurse the shiner, and we can continue this tomorrow."

"Okay, E-Scope."

She leaned in close to her ear and whispered, "You can call me Izzy, my Zeke."

Izzy reached behind her and slowly turned her doorknob. Unfortunately, Ezekiel was still leaning against the door, and his added weight made him fall down as the door swung open. He fell right on his chest, knocking the wind out of him.

"Gah! My Zeke," Izzy cried out, helping him up. "Doh! I'm so sorry about that!"

"It's all right, eh," he said as he caught his breath and dusted himself off.

"When you tell your friends you kissed me good night, don't tell them that happened."

"I thought a gentleman wasn't supposed to kiss and tell, eh."

"Well, maybe for everything past this stage of a relationship, but I think telling them you kissed me good night is cool. I'm gonna blab to everyone you kissed me."

Ezekiel grinned, and whispered, "Good night... Izzy."

"Good night, my Zeke."

He walked out of her room, and waved good bye. She waved too, and closed the door. Ezekiel reapplied the ice pack to his eye, and let out a love-struck sigh.

Someone giggled from the side. Ezekiel looked over to see Tyler, Bridgette, and Geoff peeking around the corner. The three of them, after grinning sheepishly upon being caught, mouthed cheers, flashed thumbs-ups and grins.

* * *

**Part 4 is over.**

* * *

First kiss is always sweet, isn't it? So rah rah rah, Izzy and Ezekiel have kissed by the fourth chapter! Woohoo!

So how will Trent joining the losers change things? What wild adventures await Izzy and Ezekiel? And who's going to get a bucket of ice water to throw on Eva and Noah?

For the record, TDA Aftermath is not going to happen during this story; I don't need a season recap for a written story, especially when I got many other things to write involving Izzy and Ezekiel, and the others. \grins\


	5. Izzy Jones and the Last CruSnake

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

Left 4 Dead is not mine, it belongs to Turtle Rock Studios and Valve Corporation.

All songs and their lyrics belong to their respective sings and music companies. No profit is being made, and frankly if you're going to give me trouble over it, that's really petty of you.

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Still nothing to be that worried about, unless talking about Lindsay's breasts offends you a whole lot. And marking this chapter, it's going to be nothing like the show.

* * *

**Chapter 5** - Metal Gear Izzy 4: Snake on the Brain

* * *

Izzy was drawn to the gaming room of the hotel, mostly because of the shouting and high-pitched shrieking. The four gamers were each seated in front of a TV, holding a controller from their own console.

"Shoot the damn zombies, not me," Noah was shouting.

"Sorry, man, but you keep running in front of me," Tyler wailed, thrashing his controller around as he pounded the oncoming enemies with his shotgun.

"They're not zombies, they're infected," Cody corrected them.

"They sure look like zombies, eh," Ezekiel said. "Even though they are faster, and... OH CRAP!!"

Ezekiel was shrieking as a hooded monster pounced on his character. "Get it off, eh, _get it off_," he screamed, louder and more frantic than his character was.

"Stop shouting, damn it," Noah shouted as he blew the hooded monster off with a shotgun blast.

The prairie boy was panting as his character was back in action. Izzy came up to him from behind and grabbed his shoulders, causing him to scream and jump.

"Hiyas, my handsome Shortie," she said after he calmed down. "Whacha shooting?"

"I think they're zombies, eh," he said, going a little nuts with his assault rifle.

"Infected," said Cody.

"Man, I agree with Francis, I think they're vampires," Tyler remarked.

Izzy smirked and wrapped her arms around Ezekiel's shoulders. This gave the prairie boy a great deal of comfort, and he sighed affectionately.

"Izzy is now Ezekiel's security blanket," she whispered in his ear.

Not only was his face flushing, but Ezekiel was feeling very warm inside too. When one of the vicious monsters started lassoing in his character with a long, green tongue, he almost screamed; Izzy wrapped her arms around him tighter, and he was able to keep his cool (though he was a lot hotter and fuzzier inside).

If the other boys could see Izzy hugging Ezekiel in comfort, they would have been little jealous: Tyler would miss Lindsay, Cody would long for a girlfriend, and Noah would not care that much. Why should he, he and Eva had been at third base for a few days now.

The game ended dramatically when Tyler accidentally shot Noah down, then the jock and the other two were swarmed by more of the monsters.

"Okay, that's it," Noah snapped, his eye twitching. "That's the third time you've shot to the floor, and the second time you've been responsible for a wipe!"

"Sorry," Tyler muttered, staring at the floor ashamed.

"I'll take his place," Izzy offered.

"Ever played the game before?" Cody asked.

"No, but I've used all these weapons before, and that monster wearing the hood looks like my ex; I always wanted to shoot him."

"The one who ditched you in class fur a cheerleader?" Ezekiel asked, snuggling against her arms while he could.

"Ayup yep."

"This game requires nerves of steel, fast reaction skills, and oodles of teamwork," Noah said, drumming his fingers impatiently against his controller.

"E-Scope can handle that."

"Can you stay calm too?"

Izzy merely giggled.

* * *

"WOOOO-HAAAAAA! Eat hot lead, you sons of bitches! YARRGH, I'm bashing your head in! BOOM, head shot!! BOOM, head shot!!"

"Yeah, look at it splatter," Tyler cheered. "You're awesome, E-Scope!"

"And she's gonna wake up the whole hotel at this rate," Noah grumbled. "No, I think she's woken up people in other hotels too."

"E-Scope's grabbing a gas cylinder, and she's bashing heads in with it," Izzy roared.

"Holy crap, she's doing it," Cody remarked, his eyes wide with marvel. "She's actually beating down the horde with a gas cylinder."

Ezekiel was going to congratulate her, but he was pounced by the hooded creature. He wasn't even done shouting by the time Izzy had pumped a few dozen rounds into the creature.

"It's dead, stop shooting it," Noah ordered.

"That'll teach you, you stupid boy," Izzy roared as her character pounded the corpse with his rifle. "No one touches my man, least of all you!"

"Except that your man is a woman currently," Cody remarked with a laugh.

"I could swing that way for him, he's got a cute ass here, and I love his ponytail."

"We're getting into a really weird area here," Noah said.

"Kind of hot though," Tyler said, grinning wickedly.

"Tell me a'geen why I have to play as Zoey," Ezekiel asked, his face a little red as he tried desperately not to think naughty thoughts. "I wanted to play as the Vietnam vet."

"Only _I_ get to play as Bill," Noah remarked. "And that's final."

Trent and Courtney walked in, clearly annoyed. "Why are you people screeching," Courtney asked them, frowning darkly, "like if your lives were in danger?"

"That's what happens when you fight the zombie horde," Noah remarked.

"Infected," Cody sang.

"Shut up," Noah sang back.

Trent and Courtney exchanged glanced as they looked at Cody's screen. "Seems kind of silly to scream over a video game," Trent remarked.

"I think it goes beyond silly," Courtney replied. "Try really childish and-"

A ghastly pale woman with glowing red eyes bolted towards Cody, shrieking and flailing her claws. As she came dangerously close to Cody's character, Trent and Courtney screamed in terror, grabbing each other in their fright.

"Witch, witch, witch," Cody shouted, firing wildly. "Gah, kill her! Kill her!"

When they did indeed kill her, the room was a lot more quiet. Trent and Courtney sighed in relief, realized they were still hugging each other in comfort, then let go as if the other was a zombie.

"Guys, we came by," Trent said as he and Courtney shared a "we understand each other" look, "to tell you that the next episode of Total Drama Action is on in about a half-hour."

"Sure you're gonna wanna watch that?" Noah asked, quite dry.

"Noah," Courtney said, narrowing her eyes at the bookworm.

"No no no, let's all watch them compete, reminding us that we waste our lives here."

"I agree there," she said, "but we have people we want to win."

"Like Duncan?" Ezekiel asked.

Though he had said this innocently, Courtney still glared at him. "Yes, Duncan," she spat.

"And I'm sure Trent cannot wait to cheer on Gwen," Noah said, not at all innocent. "Or maybe his team that he double-crossed."

"Okay, that does it," Courtney snarled as Trent slumped in shame, "where the hell is the power button on these things?" 

* * *

"If you're watching this episode of TDA, you'll be pleased to know," Chris said to the camera, "that the warm weather we've been having is perfect for the theme today."

The twelve young adults were seated around the large TV, with a few snacks and beverages. Trent kept looking like he wanted to go, especially when Chris Maclean gleefully retold the viewers about Trent and Gwen's breakup. Courtney and Sadie were holding his hands in comfort.

"And that's not all, earnest viewers," Chris continued, rubbing his hands together. "We are gonna have some major drama today! What with friendship between Duncan and an incredibly sick, gloomy Gwen, or Harold being bullied by a vengeful Duncan, or the fact that Lindsay and Owen have been making eyes with each other-"

"WHAT?!!" Tyler roared, standing up and sending his bowl of popcorn to the ground.

"Tyler, shut up," Eva barked.

"Owen's been eyeing my girl?!" Tyler refused to drop the matter. "I knew it! How dare he-"

Eva grabbed him by the collar from behind and yanked him back into his seat. "Sit down and shut up, we're trying to hear."

"Also, wondrous viewers, we have a surprise for you, as one of the Screaming Gaffers will be joining the Killer Grips, as a way to balance the teams since the competition hasn't been fair ever since Trent tried to throw the game for his now-ex."

The musician groaned in shame. Sadie gave him a reassuring squeeze.

Ezekiel, who was sitting next to Izzy, reached over for her hand. He was nervous, but felt confident she would want to hold hands, especially after her cuddling him during the video game.

After their first kiss from their first date, Ezekiel and Izzy were both keen to keep things going; however, they could never get in the mood. What with Trent's almost manic-depressive mood over Gwen and his team, Courtney and the twins pestering Ezekiel, and Tyler's constant fretting over not being able to be with Lindsay, it was an emotional roller coaster.

At least Eva wasn't all over Ezekiel's case. Izzy had informed him she had been spying on Eva, for, as she insisted, the innocent reason of making sure she left Ezekiel alone.

Ezekiel didn't know if he believed Izzy when she said that, but the way the redhead, with her face flushed an adorable pink, described the sexual activity between Noah and Eva left him speechless (and flushed in the face too).

"You think those two horn dogs will be having sex soon?" she had asked him.

"Oh, I hope not, eh," he said. "If Eva gets pregnant, I doo'nt knoo' if those two will be willing to get married."

"Silly, that's what condoms are for."

"They doo'nt always work, eh."

It was amazing to Ezekiel how much he and Izzy could talk about sex without anything happening between them. He had seen it so often in movies and TV, couples talking flirty and then going at it. Izzy and he had never so much as hugged after talking about sex or flirting.

"_Maybe we're just really comfortable around each other,_" he had thought. "_I do listening to her talk, she has the most adorable smile when she talks a'boot things that interest her, eh. I could just kiss her..._"

He really wanted to kiss her, it felt so wonderful the first time. He also wondered when they could officially say they were going out. Did she want to? Did Izzy want to be dating him, and did he want to continue dating someone was wild as her?

His mind was telling him that Izzy might be a little too aggressive and unpredictable for someone who lived a quiet life like he did, but his heart wanted so much to keep this going. He was listening to his heart as he reached for Izzy's hand.

When he put his hand on hers, she was suddenly seized by something on the TV. "What the hell?" she shouted, standing straight up.

Chris was hauling a large cage over to a tropical looking exhibit, and shaking out whatever was inside: a very large purple snake with large fangs.

"Snakey," Izzy hollered.

"Izzy," Courtney grumbled, "sit dow-"

"E-Scope," the redhead retorted. "None of you but Ezekiel are allowed to call me Izzy."

"Excuse me?" the CIT snapped, looking very annoyed now.

"Chris has my friend snake! He has Snakey! I cannot allow this," Izzy continued, throwing her fists up into the air. "How dare he use my friend in a challenge? He could get hurt!"

"It's a snake, E-Scope," Geoff tried to point out.

"Isn't that the same snake that bit her a lot on TDI?" Bridgette asked.

"Same pattern on that snake, if I recall correctly," Trent said.

"I cannot believe she thinks that, like," Katie said to Sadie, "she believes that snake is her friend!"

"Oh I know, right?" Sadie said, clenching Trent's hand tightly. "I think it's really creepy. But Izzy does like reptiles... and they're really icky. What do you think, Trent?"

"I think," the musician said, grimacing a little, "you're squeezing my hand a little too tight."

Sadie let go immediately, chuckling sheepishly. Ezekiel was tapping his fingers together, looking nervous.

"Izzy," he said, "are you sure that's the same..."

He stopped when he realized that Izzy was no longer there. He and some of the others looked around, but the redhead was nowhere around.

"Where did she go?" Cody asked aloud.

The others shrugged, but Ezekiel tapped his lips in thought. Though she was unpredictable and wild, he had a pretty good feeling where she was going.

* * *

"Good morning, campers," Chris said to the ten campers lined up in front of him, separated by teams. "Today, we are not only going to be participating in a challenge, but we have a proposition for the Killer Grips."

Justin, Beth, Owen, and Lindsay looked interested by this.

"As we all know, Trent was voted off because he threw the challenges for his team," Chris said, speaking with enthusiasm so as to rub it in Trent's and all of his fans' faces. "I assume Justin is now the leader of the Killer Grips."

"Yes," the four teammates said, the girls and Owen looking fondly at Justin.

"Excellent. Now, we would for one of the Screaming Gaffers to join the Killer Grips, to not only even out the unfair balance, but to right the wrong that Gwen's now-ex was throwing the challenges for her."

He grinned at the goth girl, who looked miserable. Whatever sickness she had was worse, and she was slumping where she stood. She still managed to glare at Chris for being such an asshole.

"Is that okay with the Screaming Gaffers captain?" the host asked.

"Fine, whatever," Gwen snarled, much to the regret of her teammates.

"You're just gonna let them have one of our teammates?" Heather shouted. "How can you do that? Stand up for your team, damn it!"

"You guys can have Heather," the goth girl declared, glaring at the queen bee.

Justin scowled at Gwen. "I told you that you owe us for what you and Trent did," the male model said, "and giving us Heather is not a way of repaying us."

Lindsay nodded as she grabbed Owen's arm; the blond beauty was almost quivering at the sight of her former ally. Owen patted her head in comfort.

"All right then, who do you want?" Gwen asked. "But you're not getting Leshawna or Duncan."

This left the Killer Grips with the choice between Harold and DJ. Harold was currently scraping toothpaste out of his shoe, and was casting angry scowls at Duncan, who was grinning wickedly at the nerd.

"Why not him?" Duncan asked, putting his foot on Harold's butt and pushing him forward. The lanky nerd was rolled over towards the other team.

"Looks like we have a volunteer," Chris declared. Harold tried to protest, looking sadly back at Leshawna.

"Wait a minute," he said, "I don't want to switch teams! I want to be with Lesha-"

"Too late, Harold! Now onto the challenge," Chris said as Beth helped the lanky nerd up. "Today is going to be the jungle-adventure movie, or as I like to call it, the archeology movie!"

Harold immediately perked up. "You mean like Indiana Jones?"

"Precisely!"

"Wicked sweet awesome!" He pumped his fists into the air. "Thank you, Chris!"

"Hey man, you ain't the only one who loved those movies," the host said, "so here's the deal from a diehard Jones fan...

"You all are going in there wearing fedoras, jungle camo, and armed with only one whip. Your job is to retrieve the Sacred Chris Idol within, and return here with it. Stealing is allowed, because there is nothing that you can possess that the other team cannot take away from you."

As he was speaking, Chef was forcing fedoras on the contestants, handing Beth and Duncan a whip. The punk immediately grinned and cracked it at Harold, making the lanky nerd yelp and leap about three feet in the air.

"This is gonna be fun," Duncan remarked.

* * *

Izzy was climbing up a street light, trying to get a better view into the abandoned film lot. She was trying to make binoculars with her hands, but they weren't helping much.

"Snakey, I'm coming for ya," she whispered.

"You knoo', I am willing to help you 'oot, Izzy."

She was so startled by the sound of Ezekiel's voice, Izzy lost her balance on the street light. Waving her hands frantically, she fell off, and plummeted down into his arms.

After recovering from the shock of falling, Izzy shook her head and frowned at Ezekiel. "What are you doing here, Ezekiel? You could have blown my cover!"

"Izzy, I came to help you, eh."

"This is a tactical, rescue mission, Shortie," she said as he helped her back onto her feet. "I don't need a newbie on such a dangerous mission."

Ezekiel wanted to argue with her, but there were three key points about the mission that troubled him. One, it was going into an (for him) unknown area that had many cameras; two, they were going to retrieve a large, poisonous snake; and three, it was Chris Maclean and Chef Hatchet they were going to be crossing.

"Okay, I admit that is true," he said while crossing his arms, "but I still insist on going with you."

"Oh, why, Zeke?"

"Well, what if he... kisses you and you're unconscious from the venom?"

Izzy tapped her chin and then sighed. "Okay. But you follow my instructions to the letter. And call me Commando Izzy." "Yes ma'am, Commando Izzy."

"Right, let's head in there, and retrieve Snakey on Operation Retrieve Snakey."

Ezekiel nodded and followed Izzy, and though she had told him to follow her instructions, he didn't think he could do flips like she did. He was wondering if it was a good idea to follow, she seemed really irritated he was there.

Truth be told, Izzy was delighted and frustrated that Ezekiel had come after her. It showed he was genuinely interested in what she did, but on the negative side, this was a important mission to her. She couldn't waste time instructing him or risking him making a big mistake.

Izzy hurried towards the trailers, hiding behind every obstacle that would shield her from the eyes of the contestants, the host, and the angry cook, who were all still gathered in the center discussing rules to the game.

"Hurry, into the dressing cam," Izzy hissed, heading for the large trailer.

"What? Why, Commando Izz... ah!"

He was yanked in by the redhead, who was crawling on her stomach inside. "We need special costumes to survive this dangerous expedition," she whispered at him, "and the trailer contains many costumes and gear that we'll need."

"Okay, but what a'boot the camera?"

Ezekiel then heard something being unplugged, and Izzy stood up, holding a plug.

"What camera?" she asked, slyly.

The two began to change into camo-related clothing. They were in luck, since the challenge had required all of the contestants to dress in this, and there were many extra uniforms to spare.

"Any way I can convince you to wear a fedora instead of your toque?" she asked as she pulled one of the brown fedoras on her red hair.

"Not on your life, Commando Izzy."

She laughed. "Oh Zeke. You'd wear that during your wedding, wouldn't you?"

"Possibly, eh."

"Your funeral?"

"Absolutely."

"During sex?"

Before Ezekiel could answer, Izzy was pressing up against him, her arms hooking underneath his arms and coming up fondle his toque and hair. Her emerald eyes stared into his brown pupils, as he began to feel himself sweat.

"We're all alone in here, with no cameras," she purred, grinning at him. "I always thought it would be really hot to do it in the dressing cam."

Ezekiel swallowed, very unprepared for this type of courting. "What a'boot the mission, Commando Izzy?"

"Snakey can wait," she whispered, tickling his chin. "So, you wanna do it?"

Before Ezekiel could answer, the door to the dressing room creaked open. Izzy reacted fast, pulling Ezekiel to the very back of the clothing racks. In walked Lindsay, humming to herself.

The blond bombshell sat in front of the mirror and started to confess. "I'm okay with Harvard being on our team, but it's a shame he has to be Lewanda's enemy again. I'm worried that all the main couples are breaking up, since Greta and Thomas split. And..."

She sighed and leaned back. "I dunno, I miss Tyler, but he's so far away. Will I ever see him again? I dunno... and I'm really liking being around Oaken."

Ezekiel and Commando Izzy exchanged a glance, realizing that this was pretty serious for their friend Tyler, but none of it was being recorded.

"He's really sweet and optimistic, I love being around him," Lindsay continued, "but... he's not really Justin, especially since he has a tendency to spit out whatever he's eating on me." The blond beauty sighed again. "I think I'll stick close to Oaken this challenge. That way, I can tell if I really like him or not."

She stood up and was about to head to the clothing racks when she almost tripped over something. It was the plug to the camera.

"Oh shoot, I unplugged it," Lindsay said to herself. Something inside her beauty-product near-obsessed mind clicked, and she gasped at her sudden realization.

"Now I can use the dressing room as a dressing room!"

"She wouldn't," Izzy whispered, so quiet that even she had trouble hearing it.

She would. Lindsay took off her brown top, and right before she could take off the red shirt underneath, Izzy slapped her hand over Ezekiel's eyes. The prairie boy had to force himself not to cry out in surprise.

So he waited in total blackness, until after about a minute, Izzy whispered, "Oh... my... God...," and her hand fell from covering Ezekiel's eyes.

Lindsay was standing in front of the mirror in only pink panties, trying to determine if one of the camo shirts was big enough for her. She walked back to the rack, now showing her chest completely and unintentionally to Izzy and Ezekiel, and plucked another camo get-up off the rack.

"None of these are my size," she whined to herself. "Why don't explorers or marines or whoever wears this 'cameo' stuff ever come with a belly shirt?"

Ezekiel forced himself to shut his eyes, it wasn't right to be looking at Lindsay like this, when she was naked and unaware of their presence. Though he couldn't deny seeing a girl, especially a girl like Lindsay, topless was quite a vision.

Even Izzy was thinking that. Her green eyes were getting wider the longer she stared at Lindsay, and it got to be so obvious that Ezekiel had to cover her eyes with his hand.

Lindsay finally got a pair of scissors and trimmed the bottom off of the camo shirts. She cut off most of the legs of another, until she was wearing a camo-version of a belly shirt and short shorts.

"Much better," Lindsay said, admiring herself in the mirror. She put on a fedora, which were lined up by the side, and walked out of the trailer, humming happily.

Ezekiel and Izzy dared to exhale after holding in their breath for some time. Izzy went to go stand right where Lindsay had been and laughed.

"Did you _see_ her?" she asked, grinning at the mirror and then at Ezekiel. "She had the smoothest butt I've ever seen!"

"Um, I wouldn't knoo' a'boot that, what to judge it from, eh," Ezekiel nervously replied, tapping his fingers together.

"Do you think she gets it waxed?" the redhead asked as she walked around the dressing room. "Where do you get that done? Where can you approach the front counter of a store and ask, 'Hello, I'm here for a butt waxing,' and they won't think you're strange?"

Ezekiel shrugged as he adjusted his toque. "Well, we should head 'oot befur-"

"How can you _not_ be interested in her?" Izzy shouted, turning around and getting into his face. "Now you see why Commando Izzy is so concerned."

"But... Commando Izzy, I told you she is not my type, eh!"

Izzy groaned and smacked her forehead. "My Zeke, I am a perfectly straight girl, and I wanted to tap that."

Ezekiel failed to see how tapping someone would question your sexuality. Surely poking someone's shoulder wasn't sexual?

"I mean," Izzy continued, grabbing her own breasts and then expanding her hands to Lindsay's size, "I could fit a small dog in there! I wanted to fight Owen for those fun bags!"

"Lindsay's dating Tyler, Commando Izzy."

"Him too! I'd fight the whole cast just to see what squeezing Lindsay's girls is like! Don't you?"

The prairie boy remembered something his father had once told him. Women would ask questions that there were no right answers to, that they'd always get mad. Though he wondered how this was possible, this was one of them.

If Ezekiel said yes, Izzy would get jealous and mad at him for wanting to grope Lindsay's breasts. If he said no, she would think he was lying or not that attracted to women.

Sure, he wouldn't _mind_ squeezing boobs like Lindsay, but he didn't want to do that. The thought of doing something like that seemed so far away, and for a girl to be willing for him to do that, he couldn't fathom him even doing it.

But Izzy was there, saying she wanted to grope Lindsay's chest, and was demanding to know if he wanted to too.

"I think," he said, very slowly, "that, in the name of science or study like you see here, that it would be something interesting to do, eh." Izzy blinked. She stared at Ezekiel for what felt like the longest time.

"You're crazy, my Zeke," she said casually before heading for the door. "Let's go now! Snakey needs our help!"

* * *

The jungle set was very thick with fake plants and trees. It was rather pathetic, since Izzy had leaned against a couple trees and knocked them over. Ezekiel was wondering why the film lot had done something so cheap.

"Any sign of Snakey?" Izzy whispered from behind a tree, careful not to lean against it.

"No, Commando Izzy."

"Crap. We've been looking for what feels like hours!"

"Actually," Ezekiel looked at his watch, "it's been half an hour."

"Has it?"

"Yes, Commando Izzy."

"Someone has obviously been messing with the laws of space and time, causing my feeling of time to be different with that of everyone else's. Because I have been here for hours, and I will not yield to what any watch says."

Ezekiel shrugged. The trip was feeling rather tedious to him by now. Several times, they had to hide behind props so as not to be seen by the contestants.

Lindsay's new look was all Beth could gush about, and Owen was staring with a little drool coming down the side of his mouth. Justin was questioning Harold about the Screaming Gaffers, trying to get information from him about their enemy.

When they had nearly been seen by the other team, Ezekiel and Izzy had hid behind some fake rocks. None of them were talking and all of them looked annoyed to be trudging through the very fake jungle. The only sign of humanity was that Leshawna was talking to Gwen, the sister's hand on her friend's shoulder. The goth girl still looked very miserable and guilty.

All this time, Izzy had been fervently looking for Snakey, and pretty much ignoring Ezekiel except to ask him if he had seen the snake. The prairie boy really wanted to talk to her, but she was too wrapped up in the mission.

Izzy didn't want to ignore Ezekiel, and she could sense his annoyance. Truth be told, she wanted to grab him by his cute camo jacket, yank him behind one of the fake boulders, and make out with him. Their first kiss was still on her mind, she felt a little warm and excited whenever she thought about it; however, she was here for Snakey, and no one, not even herself, could shift her attention for long.

Eventually, they did find him. The large purple snake was sunning itself on a rock, and though Ezekiel wasn't exactly a herpetologist, the creature didn't look too healthy.

"Awww, my cute Snakey is trying to get a suntan," Izzy cooed, approaching the snake.

Snakey apparently still had fight in him, for he lashed out and bit Izzy on top of the head. Ezekiel cried out in terror.

"Oops, did I get in your light?" she asked before her eyes rolled up and she collapsed.

The prairie boy ran to her side, grabbing the snake right under the head and prying it off her. The snake was unable to bite him when he was gripping him like this, so it could only hiss threatenly at him. Ezekiel, like a predator, snarled right back, staring into the snake's eyes.

As the hissing and growling continued, the snake coiled itself around Ezekiel, around his waist, chest, both arms, and once around his forehead. The prairie boy whimpered, and wondered if this snake was a cross between an anaconda and a cobra.

"Ooooogh," Izzy moaned from the ground, "you... gotta... sing to him, my Zeke."

"Wh-wh-what?!"

"Snakey loves a song, so sing to him," she explained as she stood up. "It'll soothe his nerves."

Ezekiel swallowed hard, stared at the gaping mouth of the furious snake, and began to, quite shakily, sing.

"_In the middle of the night_

_I go walking in my sleep_

_From the mountains of faith_

_To the river so deep..._"

After a few shaky notes, the snake had stopped hissing. It smiled a snakelike smile, and started bobbing his head.

"Oh, and don't sing the same song twice," Izzy told him. "He likes variety!"

Ezekiel, walking very slowly, was trying to keep his calm as this twenty foot snake was coiled all around him. Izzy was prancing next to him, singing along when she knew the words. At their pace, it was going to take some time to finally get off of the set. Luckily, Ezekiel had gathered knowledge of a lot of songs during his lonely times at Playa des Losers.

Shame that most of them weren't appropriate for a young, prairie boy to sing, but he really didn't want this snake to get angry.

"_Uptown girl... you know, I can't afford to buy her pearls... but maybe some day when my ship comes in..._

"_You are the dancing queen... young and sweet, only seventeen... dancing queen..._

"_No way, no way, you know it's not a secret... hey hey you you, I want to be your girlfriend..._

"_Everybody was kung fu fighting... those cats were fast as lightning..._

"_The only one who could ever reach me was the son of a preacher man... the only boy who could ever teach me was the son of a preacher man..._

"_Like a virgin... touched for the very first time... like a vir-ir-ir-irgi-iiiiiin..._"

Izzy was cackling by now; she couldn't help it, it was the funniest sight she had ever seen in a long time. "Oh my Zeke, you crack me up!"

"Commando Izzy, please," he whined. The snake began to hiss angrily at the song stopping, and thus, Ezekiel started to sing what he said. "Can't yo-ooooou hold onto him for a short ti-yi-yi-yime?"

"Nah, I'm a horrible singer. You're very good, my Zeke."

"Thank yo-oooooou... but I am glad no one can see this except you, eh!"

* * *

At Playa des Losers 2, the ex-contestants were watching the remaining ten enter a tomb. Harold was an expert on archeology, and recognized all the booby traps. Lindsay, however, would trigger them accidentally even when warned. At one point, she also fell into a chasm, but Owen had grabbed her at the last moment.

"Thank you, Omar," she called out, looking down into the pit she was dangling over.

"No problem, Lindsay," he replied, smiling as he slowly began to pull her up.

As she came into the view of the camera, Tyler flinched and sat up. On the screen, Beth was covering her mouth in shock and Harold was snorting with laughter.

"Owen... dude," Justin said slowly, "why are holding her by her breasts?"

"They were the best things I could get a grip on when she fell!"

"Didn't you think of her _hands_?!"

"I would, but she did her nails before coming in, and I didn't want to ruin them."

"You're so sweet," Lindsay cooed, hugging Owen. The large guy hugged her back and smiled.

"I know that Raspberry Red is a hard color to get," Owen said, then licked his lips. "And I love raspberries."

"Thank you!"

"Can I lick your nails after the challenge?"

Tyler was now spitting curses and roaring death threats at Owen, his rage causing him to almost kick the TV in. He tried to, but he missed and fell on to the ground. Bridgette and Katie helped him back in his seat.

"So tactless," Courtney grumbled. "Lindsay needs to have more pride than that."

"I dunno," Sadie mused. "Choice between plummeting an unknown depth or having my boobs squeezed, I'd say the latter."

"Strange how after groping her, though," Trent remarked, raising an eyebrow, "Owen's thoughts shift immediately to food."

A burst of static on the TV changed the scene to Chris Maclean, sitting in a beach chair and sipping a frilly drink. He was around the trailers, living the high life.

"Well, it's fun to watch that and all," he said, "but I thought you all might want a glimpse of who has snuck onto the set of Total Drama Action!"

The screen was very briefly filled with static before focusing on inside the fake jungle. When the ex-contestants saw who it was, they were shocked.

"E-Scope? Ezekiel?" Cody declared. "Whoa... is that a snake around Zeke?"

"What the _hell_ are they doing there?" Courtney shouted. "That's not fair! Why do they get to be on TV?"

"Courtney," Bridgette tried to intervene, but the CIT was fired up.

"No, this is not right at all! Crazy Girl and Mr. Sexist are on the show, and I'm not," she spat, and leaned back in her chair. "I am so gonna call my lawyer over this."

"Is he singing?" Noah asked the others, pointing at the screen.

"_You cut me open and I_," Ezekiel was, indeed, singing, "_keep bleeding, keep keep bleeding love, I keep bleeding..._"

"Yes, he is," Eva affirmed this before bursting out in laughter.

* * *

The challenge seemed like it was over after another half hour. The Screaming Gaffers had all fallen into a trap chasm, and found themselves in a basement. The Killer Grips, minus Harold, were chased out by a flock of bats; Lindsay managed to snag one in her hair for a couple minutes, and Owen freed it as she thrashed about.

The two teams were standing in the trailer lot, looking dirty, tired, and defeated. Chris eyed them all, shaking his head.

"You all failed, or just gave up," the host was shouting. "Indiana Jones would be ashamed! Lara Croft would be appalled! That guy from National Treasure would be rolling in his grave!"

"He didn't die," DJ pointed out.

"Oh?" Chris asked. "But that's what Wikipedia said about the sequel. Man, you cannot trust anyone these days..."

Leshawna was looking over at the Killer Grips, and noticed the lack of a certain brunet nerd. "Where's Harold?" she asked, sounding concerned.

When they shrugged, Chris groaned. "Aw man, you all left him in there?"

"Whoa Chris, are you concerned over Four Eyes?" Duncan asked, almost alarmed.

"No, it's just that since he's the only one not here, that means we gotta go looking for him so we can send him home."

Leshawna's jaw dropped. "What?! But... that's... that's not fair!"

"Tough luck, nerd boy," Duncan cackled. Leshawna furiously pushed him over.

"This is all your fault," she shouted, "you punk star-wannabe, pants to your knees, overly pierced criminal! I outta-"

The ground began to shake, startling everyone, even Chris and Chef Hatchet. Harold came running from the jungle set, something tucked under his right arm. A very large boulder was rolling towards him.

"Gangway," he shouted, leaping to the side. The boulder almost crushed the other contestants, and came to a rolling stop when it smashed the guys' trailer.

"Damn it," Chef Hatchet roared. "Now I gotta fix that stupid thing again!"

The exhausted nerd stood up, panting hard. "Oh gosh... Indy never had to worry about heart palpitations," he moaned, his hand on his chest.

"Harold dude," Chris said as he approached the lanky nerd, pointing at the object tucked under his arm, "is that what I think it is?"

The brunet nerd dusted off his fedora and stood upright, proud and feeling especially awesome as he presented the Sacred Chris Idol, a gold-plated bust of the host.

"Yeeehaw," Chris whooped, lifting the narcissistic idol over his head. "Harold, you make the Jones family proud! Harold wins the Killer Grips' first victory, and immunity!"

The other four let out loud cheers. Lindsay and Beth both hugged Harold before Owen lifted him in the air. Justin applauded.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - More make-up than you'd ever need.)**

Justin - "At first, I was a little worried about Harold being on our team. But the guy has undeniable mad skills. This'll go perfectly with my plans..."

Leshawna - "Great, _just_ great. Not only did we lose the challenge, but we lost a good member of our team! Duncan just had to try and bully poor Harold one last time... well, that mo'fo is going to get it!"

Owen - "E-Scope was right! Lindsay's boobs are soft!" \He laughs, swoons, then takes a bottle of raspberry-colored nail polish and starts to drink it; he winces horribly, and spit-takes it all out.\

Lindsay - "Ewww, there's raspberry paint all over this room! Well, about the challenge, it went okay, didn't it? And yeah, I cannot keep my mind off Omar. He was so gentle... wait, do I hear hissing?"

* * *

Lindsay turned around, away from the dressing room's mirror/camera. Her foot snagged on the camera wire, and when she attempted to stand up, she tripped and hit the ground, disconnecting the camera.

"See, Zeke? Big boobs help for when you fall on your chest."

Lindsay looked around, very confused and a little scared. "Who's there?" she asked, looking around frantically. "Who's there? Please come out!"

Izzy stepped out from behind the clothing racks. "Hi, girlfriend!"

"A-Scope?" the blond girl asked. "What are you doing here? Didn't you get voted off?" She put a hand on her head, rustling her blue bandana. "My head hurts, this is too confusing."

"Oh, I just snuck back on with my Zeke?"

"Your who?"

Ezekiel appeared from behind the clothing rack too, waving sheepishly at Lindsay. She blinked her blue, doe eyes, and waved back. "Hiyas, Ethan, it's been some time."

"Yes, I guess it has, eh."

"But why do you have a snake coiled around you, Ethan?"

Ezekiel looked at the large purple snake wrapped around him, and pointed at Izzy. "Commando Izzy wanted to retrieve her pet snake, Snakey."

Lindsay nodded, trying to understand this all though it took a lot of effort. "But why is he wearing headphones?"

"We found ourselves an MP3 player in here," Izzy explained, "so we're letting him listen to some tunes before we take him home."

Lindsay got to her feet, and she tried to change the subject from this confusing one. "All right then. So did you guys hear? We won!"

Izzy pumped her fists in the air. "Way to go, Grips!"

"And Olsen caught me when I was about to fall! Your boyfriend is so sweet, I-Scope!"

"He's not my boyfriend anymore, just my friend."

"Really?" Lindsay asked, her blue eyes sparkling. "You mean... he's single?"

"Yep! Why don't you go give him a taste of the Lindsay?" Izzy suggested, then she poked the beautiful blond on the chest, right above her breasts. "Two scoops of it!"

Lindsay looked quite unsure of this. "Um, what do you mean, 'two scoops'? Is that anything like ice cream?"

"I mean your boobs, Lindsay," Izzy shouted, seizing the girl's shoulders. "Tell me, how did you get them to be so big?!"

"Um... errr... dad says I was an early and strong developer."

"What size are you?"

"DD, I think. It's hard to read the little writing on my underwear, the tags are so small."

"Can I feel them?"

Before Lindsay could react, Ezekiel intervened. "Wait wait wait wait, eh," he declared. "Commando Izzy, you're not being fair to Tyler."

Izzy shrugged, letting go of Lindsay's shoulders. "I'm just trying to help out Owen."

"But you know Tyler really misses Lindsay!"

Lindsay gasped. "He... he does? I thought for sure he was gone away for good, or something."

"He isn't, eh," Ezekiel said, turning to Lindsay. "He talks a'boot you all the time, eh. He really, truly misses you, and he's almost losing his mind at Playa des Losers 2."

"Oh yeah. The other day, he was staring at Bridgette's head," Izzy said, "and he said it was because her blond hair reminded him of you.

"Personally though, I would have stared at my hair to remind me of you, Lindsay. Mine is lone like yours, see?"

The redhead turned around, her busy hair grazing Ezekiel's shoulders as the curls around her face bounced. While Ezekiel wondered if Izzy was being serious, Lindsay was nodding a great deal, saying, "Oh, you are _so_ right, U-Scope."

The blond girl then turned back to Ezekiel. "Well, I really am getting to like Omar... I mean, Owen, but I do miss Tyler a lot. Could you give him a very important message for me?"

"Sure, eh, but why not tell the confessional here?"

"I prefer telling a human being, it's much more 'realism'," Lindsay explained. "Just tell him I miss him, I wish he was on our team, tell him to watch his carbs and his sugar input, that I'll gladly take him to France with Beth and I when I win...

"Oh... and give him this!"

Lindsay cupped Ezekiel's face and kissed him deeply. As the prairie boy's eyes went wide and Izzy's mouth dropped, Snakey gave an approving hiss.

After Lindsay parted from Ezekiel, she smiled. "Be sure to give him that to the full effect, so it's so much more 'personalized'."

"Do I have to give him tongue too?" Ezekiel asked, his eyes still wide and his voice light.

"Not if you don't want to."

"C'mon, Ezekiel," Izzy grumbled, grabbing Ezekiel's wrist and pulling him towards the door. She looked furious, and the prairie boy knew he was in hot water.

"Thank you, Ethan," Lindsay called after them. "Bye, O-Scope, glad you could find Slakey!"

She turned around and looked at the confession camera's wire. "Better plug that in," she said to herself.

Suddenly, and very surprising to Lindsay, Izzy's hands reached around the blond girl and grabbed her breasts. Lifting them up and squeezing them, the redhead made a deductive-like hum.

"Wow," was all Izzy said before exiting the dressing room again, leaving a very surprised and red-faced Lindsay.

* * *

Izzy didn't speak to Ezekiel as the two left the film lot and headed back to their hotel. The redhead had her arms crossed, and the prairie boy felt it might be better to let her fume over it.

"_Then a'geen, shouldn't I explain myself_?" he thought. "_Wait, what is there to explain? Lindsay kissed me! I didn't kiss her, eh! I wasn't the one jamming their tongue into someone else's mouth._

"_But... I could have pushed her away. I could have told her that Izzy and I are kind of seeing each other... though we're not, eh. And we're most certainly not going to now._"

Ezekiel sighed aloud, almost slapping his forehead but he remembered that Snakey was coiled around there. "_I'm such an idiot,_" he thought to himself. "_I really blew it. I doo'nt deserve Izzy after that... I'd be a rotten boyfriend_."

When they finally arrived at the hotel, the others were all anxious to talk to them. Courtney, however, was furious.

"How dare you two try to sneak onto the show?" she hollered. "You little creeps! We're all rotting here at the resort, and you think you're more special than us-"

"Shut the hell up," Izzy replied, glaring at the CIT and startling her, not to mention everyone else. "I really, _really_ don't want to have to deal with you and your ranting. Now leave me alone."

She walked over to a nearby chair and sat down, arms crossed and brow furrowed. She kept casting side glares at Ezekiel, reminding him her anger was all because of him.

The others, still shocked by Izzy's anger, looked over at Ezekiel, who still had Snakey coiled around him. "So," Cody was the first to speak, "did you see anyone?"

"Lindsay, eh."

Izzy growled, making Ezekiel look down in shame. Tyler seized the prairie boy's shoulders and shook him.

"Lindsay!? What did she say? Did she mention me?" he asked, a frantic worry in his eyes. "Did you tell her I miss her?"

"Ah um, yes, eh. She said she misses you, she wishes you were on her team, she wants you to watch your, um, carbs, and your sugar input, and that she'd gladly take you to France with Beth and her after she wins the contest.

"Oh, and she also wanted me to give you this, eh."

Ezekiel cupped Tyler's face and kissed him. All those watching blanched, gasped, and/or cried out in surprise; even Izzy was wide-eyed with shock.

After Ezekiel let go of Tyler and stepped back, he winced as if expecting a punch to the gut or face. Tyler did neither, standing there thunderstruck.

"So... wait a minute, man," the brunet jock said, shaking his head, "Lindsay kissed you like that, and said to give it to me?"

"Yes, eh."

Tyler's face broke out in a wild grin, and he pumped his fists into the air, whooping for joy. "She misses me," he shouted, startling the others. "She still wants me! WOOHOO!"

He ran off, jumping for joy. Noah cocked an eyebrow and said, "That's the happiest I've ever seen a straight man react to another man kissing him on the lips."

Bridgette looked over at Ezekiel and smirked slyly. "Are you sure you're trying to ask out E-Scope, Zeke?"

At this, Ezekiel looked forlorn. "Izzy's really mad at me, eh," he whispered, "ever since Lindsay kissed me to deliver that message."

"But wasn't that for Tyler?"

"I doo'nt think it mattered to her," he said with a sigh. "I really, really screwed up, eh. The mission was a disaster."

Eva, who was staring at Ezekiel and Snakey closely, grunted. "Especially since that snake is dead."

Izzy gasped, and was out of her chair in a flash. "What what what?" the redhead shouted, grabbing Snakey's head gently.

"Snakey? Snakey? SNA-AAAAAAAAKEEEEEEY!"

"Oh man," Trent said, looking at the large, purple snake coiled around Ezekiel. "You guys actually did go and retrieve that snake from the film lot!"

"Shame he didn't make the trip," Geoff remarked. "He looks pretty bad, eh."

"That's because he's dead, stupid," Eva growled.

Izzy was frantically unraveling Snakey from Ezekiel, lying the large reptile on the lobby floor. "C'mon, Snakey, hiss to me! Bite me even!"

She tugged off the headphones, tossing them and the MP3 player aside. "Snakey, you got to get up! You've never given up on anything in your whole life! Now breathe!"

Izzy opened the snake's mouth and began performing CPR. More than one person reacted with disgust at this.

Ezekiel was not one of them. He watched Izzy's desperate attempts to save the snake. The prairie boy inspected the body, finding no injuries or anything to indicate what had killed the poor snake.

"Snakey," Izzy sobbed, cradling the dead snake in her arms. "Oh... my little Snakey... no no no..."

The other campers started to leave her, letting her mourn in what they considered was really weird.

"It's just a snake," Katie said to Sadie, "and she didn't even own it."

"Not to mention all the stupid thing ever did was bite her," Courtney added, rolling her eyes.

The only one who was still with Izzy was Ezekiel. He watched her mourn over the snake, trying to think of how to comfort her.

"I guess it was his time to go, Izzy," he said softly. "He must have lived a good, long life, and now... now it was time."

Izzy sobbed. Picking up the long coils of the snake, she ran off, up the stairs to her room. Ezekiel watched her go, sighing heavily and pulling his toque down.

"And you blew it a'geen, Zeke," he said to himself. "You stupid, stupid boy."

* * *

It was late that night when the live televised Award Ceremony of TDA was being broadcasted. The fourteen ex-contestants, minus Izzy, were gathered around the TV.

"So, who's up for the chopping block?" Cody asked.

"Gwen, Duncan, Leshawna, Heather, and DJ," Geoff listed.

"Definitely Heather," Katie remarked. "She is, like, so mean."

"Meaner than mean," Sadie agreed.

"I think Gwen should go," Courtney said, "after what she did to Trent."

Trent sighed, then shrugged. "I don't really want her to lose. I don't hate her, Courtney."

Courtney opened her mouth, then, with great willpower, forced it shut. "All right," she muttered, shrugging. "If that's how you feel, Trent."

Bridgette sighed, looking at Duncan on the screen. Her fists tightened and she sighed. She looked over at Ezekiel, who gave her a knowing nod. "Where's E-Scope?" she asked the prairie boy.

"I'm not sure, eh. She's not in her room."

"Maybe you should go find her, Zeke. She needs some comfort after losing her... pet."

"She's really, really mad at me, eh." "She'll stay mad until you two make amends."

Ezekiel sighed, then smiled lightly at her. Excusing himself, he stood up and walked away. Courtney, who had seen all this, frowned at Bridgette.

"Why are you talking to him?" the CIT asked accusingly. "Don't you remember how he used to hit on you?"

"Courtney..."

"At least you got him to go away."

As Courtney turned back to the screen, Bridgette sighed and hung her head. She felt a hand rub her back, and turned to see Geoff smiling at her. She managed to smile back, and leaned in for a kiss.

* * *

Ezekiel finally found Izzy in the garden of the hotel. A large plot of land had been barren there for some time, obviously some delayed work of the gardeners. Izzy was completely soiled, dirt covering her from head to toe.

"Hi, Zeke," she said nonchalantly as she pulled herself out of the hole.

"Izzy, what are you doing?"

"Making Snakey's grave."

The redhead picked up the large, purple, dead snake nearby, and gracefully lowered it into the pit. She sighed as she picked up the shovel.

"I...," she started to say, "I don't know if I can throw the dirt on him."

"I could do it, if you want," Ezekiel spoke up. "And I'll be careful, eh."

She looked at him, and gave him a very small smile before handing him the shovel. The prairie boy did as he said, being very gentle when dropping the first shovels of earth into the grave. Once Snakey was completely covered, he began to shovel the rest in.

"The gardeners are going to be really surprised if they dig that deep," Izzy said, not smiling but a trace of humor in her voice. "Dead Snakey would give them quite a scare."

"I'm sure he'd want that, Izzy."

"Yeah, Snakey did like scaring people, though he couldn't help it. That's why we were friends, because I didn't act scared around him, so he... oh God."

Izzy got down on her knees in front of Snakey's grave. Tears welled up in her emerald eyes, and she fell on her hands. Izzy sniffed and sobbed, beginning to shake

"All I wanted was a friend," she whimpered. "I really... really... wanted someone to be there for me... despite it all...

"Snakey... I... I just wanted a friend..."

Ezekiel stopped shoveling when Izzy had started to cry. He walked over to her side, listening to what she was saying.

Before he knew it, there were tears in his eyes as well. Her voice and her words were a clear message of how lonely, how terribly alone she had been feeling. It suddenly made sense to him why she wanted the snake as a friend, that desperate for companionship.

Ezekiel wrapped his arms around her shoulders and hugged her. She looked over at him and saw the tears in his eyes. "Z-Zeke?"

"I'm soo'ry, Izzy," he said, his voice cracking. "I really should have understood sooner. I'm so soo'ry."

"Zeke... you don't have to apologize."

She turned towards him. "You couldn't have known, and even though you didn't, you've been there for me these past few days. I should apologize to you, Ezekiel. You're my friend, my Zeke."

"Izzy," he said, taking a second to wipe a tear away from his cheek with his shoulder, "I... I just really screwed things up today-"

"How? By coming with me to the film lot to help me get Snakey? Because Lindsay kissed you and not the other way around?" she asked. "I feel like a total ass, an enormous hypocrite for being mad at you over that. I squeezed her breasts intentionally, and yet I'm mad at you for her kissing you?

"Oh, and by the way," Izzy giggled and winked, "they are fab-u-lust!"

Ezekiel blinked, then smiled and chuckled. "Sounds like you're feeling like your normal self, Izzy."

"I am, Ezekiel, I am. Thanks to you. You're the nicest friend I've ever had, better than any man or woman or legless reptile."

She placed one hand on his chest, over his heart, and the other on his cheek. Ezekiel looked into her wet, green eyes. He saw that adorable smile of hers starting to pucker up. He leaned in as she came closer...

A bloodcurdling scream of "NOOOOOOOO," from the hotel rattled them both, causing them to jump. Ezekiel looked around, wondering who was being murdered.

"Oh dear," Izzy said, giggling. "That was Courtney."

"Courtney?" Ezekiel repeated. "What's she screaming a'boot?"

Izzy tapped her lips and smirked. "Oh... Izzy thinks she knows who just got voted off."

* * *

**End of Part 5.**

* * *

Yep, Duncan got the boot. Yep, poor Izzy and Ezekiel didn't get to kiss.

So when will they? Why was Duncan eliminated? And when the heck am I going to write something that is rated M?

All Lindsay fans should know, I love the girl too. She's not going to be a slut during this story, she just has to make a decision between two boys she really likes.

And in case you were all wondering, that was Left 4 Dead the boys were playing at the beginning. A game I'd love to play very, very much, but I don't own an XBox 360 or a Windows; as an avid Mac and Nintendo, I refuse to get either. I just got me Dead Rising: Chop 'til You Drop, so I got my share of zombie killing.


	6. Save the Last Kiss for Zeke

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Okay, I have to stress that this is the _most_ mature chapter yet! While I am not vividly describing anything past second, sex is involved in this chapter. So if you're uncomfortable with that or not old enough, skip over the first part where there is a warning.

The second part is not so bad, just really sensual. Now enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 6** - Nobody Puts Izzy in a Corner

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Where the actors lament.)**

**Leshawna** - \She smirks at the camera.\ "It was quite easy to get rid of that punk, actually. Heather was more than happy to agree voting someone else off, since she knows we all cannot stand that back stabber. Thus, I only had to convince DJ for help as well, so it was three votes on a five-man team."

* * *

That was the reason and method in which Duncan was voted off. Both he and Courtney were livid when he arrived at Playa des Losers 2. So much that everyone felt it would be best to stay out of their way; even Izzy didn't want to rile them any more.

The next day at breakfast, it seemed that a good night's sleep had soothed both their nerves. Alas, some resentment was carried to the breakfast table still.

Duncan, Courtney, Bridgette, Geoff, and Trent were sitting together at the fateful meal; Duncan was wolfing down the good food like crazy, having had his fill of Chef's revolting food. Izzy and Ezekiel were sitting at a nearby table, discussing new pets for Izzy (Ezekiel was trying to steer her away from poisonous ones, but she was wavering between giant centipede and black emperor scorpion).

The punk watched Ezekiel and Izzy talk, and raised half of his unibrow. "So, are those two dating or something?" he asked the others.

"Disturbing, huh?" Courtney remarked.

Bridgette sighed, holding in her frustration. Geoff shrugged at Duncan, while Trent tapped his chin in thought. "I don't think they're dating quite yet, but they've been hanging out together a lot."

Duncan chuckled while Courtney scoffed. "That's only because no one else wants to hang out with those two," she said.

"Harshness," Geoff said; he noticed his girlfriend was looking more downcast, and wish he could make a better statement than what he just said.

"Huh, well, if that's how Izzy or E-Scope, or whatever the hell it is," Duncan said, "that's how she wants to spend her time, let her."

"We all agreed not to associate with Ezekiel because he's sexist," Courtney stated, drumming her fingers on the table impatiently.

"Really now," the punk said as he shoved more bacon into his mouth, "well, I guess the first place losers get what they deserve."

Bridgette frowned at Duncan, but he didn't notice; he was distracted by Trent's frown.

"What is it, Elvis?" Duncan asked him. "You still think I was hitting on your girl or something?" "I had my suspicions, yes."

"I wasn't interested in her that way, okay? C'mon, man, she and I were just hanging out together because we were the only sane ones on that team."

Trent sighed, and leaned back. "Okay fine. I guess it doesn't matter anymore."

"Pretty damn sad that you got booted in two ways too, dude," Duncan remarked. "Even though you were trying to throw the competition, at least it was for a good reason."

Geoff chuckled, and patted Trent's shoulder. "Yeah man. I would have tried to throw the competition for Bridgette if she were on the other team."

"Um, hello Geoff?" Duncan said, raising an eyebrow. "You did."

"I don't follow you there, bra."

"You were making out with her during the alien challenge. So you pretty much blew the whole thing for her, and for you."

Bridgette's frown was getting darker, but she remained quiet. Geoff chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head. "C'mon, Duncan dude, it's not like we were the first ones to be eliminated in that challenge. Didn't, like, Harold and Owen get blasted before we did?"

"Didn't matter to us, dude. You pretty much showed us you two were never going to be any help, so we kicked you horny peeps."

**BAM!!**

The entire café was startled when Bridgette slammed her fists on the table. All heads panned over to their table, where the surfer girl was glaring furiously at the punk.

"We were _going_ to help," she snapped at him, "but _you_ wouldn't let us. We wanted to go to the boiler room with you and Gwen, but you left us!"

"Oh please," Duncan scoffed, not nearly as shocked as the others, "you two would have just sucked face, got in the way, and sucked more face."

"You didn't give us a chance," Bridgette shouted, her face getting red. "You just couldn't stand the fact that we were happy together, because you were bitter Courtney wasn't in the competition!"

Duncan was now glaring right back at Bridgette. He stood to his feet and pointed a finger at the blond surfer. "You've pissed me off real bad, surfer chick."

"You think you're pissed off?" Bridgette shouted, getting to her feet as well. "I've had it with you, you big, fat jerk!"

"Bridgette, Duncan, stop it," Courtney pleaded, looking between her friend and her boyfriend.

"No, Courtney, I've been wanting to have it out with him for some time now! I've had it with him singling out Geoff and I!"

"Oh please, Malibu Barbie," Duncan replied, crossing his arms. "You only have yourself to blame for when you got voted off."

"You were behind Geoff and I eliminations, both times! You even tried to force Geoff to vote for me!"

"Fight fight fight," Izzy was chanting from the side, "oh c'mon, fight, kick his ass, Bridgette!"

Duncan scoffed and waved dismissively at the surfer girl. "Oh, screw off, Bridgette. I'm here to enjoy myself, not to hear you bitch and blame me for your loses."

"Duncan, dude," Geoff exclaimed, looking shocked.

Bridgette, heaving mad, turned on her heel and stormed off. Izzy sighed and muttered to Ezekiel, "I wanted to see her kick his ass."

Courtney was looking disapprovingly at her boyfriend. "That was mean, Duncan."

"Oh come on, Courtney. It was completely called for. I just got eliminated, I don't need her ragging on me about how unfair her life is.

"And Geoff man?" he said as Geoff stood up. "I think it'd be best if you let her blow off some steam first before you try talking to her."

The party man sighed and sat back down. "Duncan dude, did you have to tell her to 'screw off'?"

"Hey man, she started screaming at me. What was I supposed to do?"

* * *

Bridgette was sitting on her bed in her room, taking deep breaths. She could barely think straight, she was so mad at Duncan and herself.

"_I so could have handled that better,_" she thought, shaking her head. "_Oh God, I lost it back there... I really am losing it these days. Am I going to completely snap soon?_"

A light rapping on the window alerted her. She looked to see Izzy's head hanging upside-down at the top of her window, her red hair swaying in the breeze.

"Hi, Bridgette," she called out, smiling happily. "Can you let me in?"

Bridgette was quite sure she had snapped now. Regardless, she opened the window and helped Izzy, who rappelled down into the surfer's room.

"E-Scope, what are you doing?"

"I wanted to check up on you. You left breakfast in a madder state than my mom leaves our table at home, but you broke less stuff."

"Why didn't you just use the door to come in?"

"Now where's the fun in that?"

Izzy peeked out the window and looked up. "Thank you, my Zeke!"

The prairie boy stuck his head out the window from the room above and waved. Izzy waved back and smiled at Bridgette.

"We at first thought he should comfort you, but he really didn't like the idea of rappelling down from the fourth floor his first time rappelling," Izzy explained. "Now, what's bothering you, Bridgie?"

"Hasn't Ezekiel told you?"

"I asked, but he said it would be best if you told me. I even tickled him under the armpits to get him to talk, but he beat me at my own game: he found out my sides can be exceptionally ticklish."

Izzy shrugged, and blew one of her red curls away from her face. "Anyway, Bridgie, let Dr. E-Scope tell you what is bothering you?"

Bridgette sighed, sat down on her bed again, and told Izzy everything: her frustration with Duncan, the feeling her friends didn't like or support her anymore, and how it was started to make her so irritable and gloomy that she couldn't focus, not even when kissing Geoff.

"Holy cow, your make-out sessions with Geoff have been down, but I didn't know it was because of that," Izzy declared. "We cannot allow this! We must let you vent out your frustrations!"

"How?" Bridgette asked. "Geoff and Courtney support him, and Duncan won't even give me time of day."

"Let's make a voodoo doll out of him! I did that once, but I accidentally caused my shoulder to bleed; guess I shouldn't have used my own red hair for the doll."

The surfer girl sighed. "Oh, what good would it do? I couldn't yell at anyone for too long, and even if I did, he's not going to apologize or feel guilty. He's so mean, why does Courtney date him?"

"Because she's mean too?"

Bridgette glanced at Izzy, then sighed again. The redhead sat next to her and wrapped her arms around the surfer's shoulders.

"You know what, Bridgie? We should try to cheer you up so that you'll be making out with Geoff again in no time! I love watching you too, you make the funniest noises."

Bridgette couldn't help but laugh, her face turning a little pink. "Any suggestions, E-Scope? Oh, and nothing life-threatening."

"Awwwwwwwwww."

They were silent for a minute as Izzy pondered this, rocking Bridgette back and forth in her arms. The redhead gave her a squeeze and gasped, an idea coming to her wild mind.

"I got it! Bridgette, what's your boyfriend known for most?"

"... Partying?"

"Yes! We must throw a party! Let's throw..."

Izzy stood up and posed in a classic disco pose. "A dah'nce!"

"You want to hold a dance here?"

"Yes, Bridgette! We will liven up this joint, and get your groove back! Now c'mon!"

The redhead grabbed Bridgette's arm and yanked her up, then she gave the blond surfer a playful smack on the butt. Bridgette yipped and jumped.

"Ack, E-Scope! C'mon!"

"I cannot help it, I'm all fired up! Now let's get the lobby ready for a dance, that's where it can be and will be hosted!

"Oh, and you got a great butt, Bridgette," Izzy remarked, grinning at her. "That come from being an athlete?"

"Well that," she replied, smirking, "and the fact that I fall down so often my butt's got natural cushion for the landing."

* * *

Bridgette, Izzy, and Ezekiel were hard at work in the lobby, getting some things ready. Their progress was slow, but when Ezekiel told the staff (using five different languages, not counting English), they had a lot more hands from the hotel staff.

Trent, Katie, and Sadie found out by accident, and offered their help right away. Cody and Tyler were drawn into helping out too. When Geoff wandered by and realized what they were doing, he practically hit the roof in excitement.

"PAR-TAY," he hollered, pumping his fists in the air and leaping excitedly. Running towards Bridgette, he lifted her up and started kissing her with wild passion.

"Oh Bridgette, I love you so much," he declared in-between kisses, "we're going to enjoy this so much!"

"Wow, he is so excited," Izzy whispered to Ezekiel, "he might take her right on the floor."

"But he has already, eh, taken her. He's holding her in his arms," he said, pointing at Geoff and Bridgette.

As the redhead explained what she meant to Ezekiel, Courtney walked into the lobby. Noting the decorations and staff helping, she assumed something big was going on. "Is Chris Maclean coming over for a visit?" she asked Trent.

"No, Bridgette and E-Scope wanted to throw a dance," the musician explained to her. "But speaking of Chris, we have to make sure the host doesn't find out, or he'll crash the party."

Courtney nodded. "As much as I hate it how I'm not in the show, not having a camera pointed in my face is relaxing."

Excusing herself, she headed over to Geoff and Bridgette, waiting patiently for the kissing to stop. It took a while, because the surfer girl's passion for making out had been renewed by Geoff's party hype.

"Bridgette?" the CIT said when the couple finally separated. "I'd really like to apologize for how Duncan treated you at breakfast today."

"It was my fault," Bridgette said as she wiped the excess saliva from her mouth. "I lost my temper."

"Well maybe, but I'm going to talk to him about it," Courtney assured her, putting her hands on her friend's shoulders. "I don't like it how he's bullying you, so I'll set him straight. He's up in his room, sulking, but I'll make him listen.

"See you at the dance later tonight!"

The two young ladies hugged before Courtney left. Ezekiel and Izzy overheard this exchange, and the prairie boy was rather surprised. "That seems rather nice for Courtney, eh; most unusual."

"Oh I don't think so," Izzy said. "I'll bet Courtney's never had a real friend before, and Bridgette has always been nice to her. So she wants to be a friend back to her.

"Plus, Courtney loves arguing with Duncan, so this gives her a chance to yell at him. Or..."

Izzy grinned wickedly. She hurried off, and Ezekiel only managed to hear her say to herself, "And this time, I'll have a camera!"

* * *

**(Warning, contents are maturing.)**

Izzy was rappelling again, suction cups on her knees and left hand. She dangled herself horizontally in front of Duncan's window, and peeped in.

Courtney was in there already, and her mouth was quick in action. Izzy couldn't understand exactly what she was saying, but she did pick up "Bridgette," "ogre," and "CIT."

Izzy waited patiently as Courtney continued to lecture Duncan, who was crossing his arms and staring at her; he also seemed to be waiting patiently for her to finish it.

When the long-winded CIT was done ranting, she stood in front of Duncan, panting and glaring at him. Duncan waited a couple seconds, then he asked her something. Izzy didn't know how to read lips quite yet, but she was pretty sure he said, "Are you done?" Courtney nodded, and the two were, very suddenly, all over each other.

Lips crushing against lips, bodies almost molding together for how close they were, hands petting each other. Courtney's leg lifted up and wrapped around Duncan's hip as the punk leaned her back in the midst of their intense kissing.

"_Oh goody,_" Izzy thought, grinning as she held the digital video camera in position, "_they're going at it like bunnies in a cage!_"

The odd couple collapsed on Duncan's bed, still kissing and groping intensively. Courtney's hands went under his shirt to feel his chest, then she simply pulled the skull-logo top off of him. Her shirt was gone after a few more seconds, and he was soon feeling up her stomach and chest.

Courtney arched her back as Duncan kissed her face, mostly between her eyes; Izzy suspected he was kissing her freckles. He was also squeezing her breasts, almost kneading them.

Duncan, after he was done kissing Courtney's freckled face, and pushed her bra up. His mouth was on her dark nipple in a flash. She squinted in pleasure, but she was muttering something as she unhooked her bra from behind and tossed her undergarment to the side.

"_Probably something about being too aggressive and how he should properly undress her,_" Izzy thought, watching Courtney moan and run her fingers through Duncan's mohawk as he sucked and licked her nipples. "_Hmmm, she does seem like the finicky type, even during sexual times._"

Duncan then began to blow on Courtney's nipple, and lightly graze it with his teeth; it was some kind of weird tease, and whatever it was, Courtney was giggling and squirming happily.

"_... Or not._"

Courtney, frisky now, smacked Duncan's butt. He growled at her, and the two began to wrestle. Izzy raised an eyebrow; that looked like fun.

When the playful fighting was over, the two were kissing heavily again. Izzy saw Duncan's tongue enter her mouth, and Courtney swooned and leaned back. His mouth kissed her chin, her neck, her shoulder blades, all the while caressing her butt with his palms.

Courtney's hands went down to Duncan's pants, and unzipped him. As they struggled to remove his black jeans, Izzy felt her face go red.

"_Oh my, how many bases are they planning on rounding?_" Izzy thought. "_Just how far have these two weirdos gone before?_"

Izzy's first question was answered when Duncan's pants and boxers were on the ground, leaving him completely naked. Courtney was starting to head down...

Outside, Izzy swallowed a lump in her throat. "_Oh wow... this is gonna be some _great_ footage! Woohoo!_"

* * *

Izzy, blushing hard and grinning victoriously, headed back down to the lobby after all the excitement was over. She couldn't wait to share this with Ezekiel.

She saw him in the middle of the newly-prepared dance floor, watching Geoff. The party animal was dancing as a dance song was playing. Bridgette was watching them, bobbing and swinging lightly to the music.

"What's hanging, surfer girl?" Izzy asked, approaching Bridgette and picking up the swing of the dance in her step.

"Hey, welcome back, E-Scope," Bridgette greeted her. "Geoff's showing Ezekiel how to dance."

"My Zeke doesn't know how to dance?"

"He said he's only seen it on TV. He's never been to a dance or a party before."

"Of course not, he's home schooled! Doh, E-Scope, you dolt, you should have remembered that," Izzy exclaimed, bonking herself on the forehead with her video camera.

Izzy watched Ezekiel watching Geoff for a short while before her anxiousness got the best of her. She rushed over to her toque-wearing friend and grabbed his arm.

"Izzy has something she wants to show you," she sang, starting to tug him away. Ezekiel, surprised, barely had enough time to wave good-bye to Geoff and Bridgette; Geoff didn't notice, he was still too busy dancing.

Ezekiel was half-dragged, half-escorted to Izzy's room. When inside, Izzy began pressing a few buttons on her digital camera.

"This'll be a few seconds," she said. "Just sit tight, my Zeke!"

The prairie boy nodded, and plopped down in a chair. He then began to look around Izzy's room. She sure had a wide collection of random objects.

Among the many things scattered about Izzy's very unmade room, he noticed the following: a small harpoon, a fire baton, a plush toy snake, a bear costume, empty bags of BBQ chips, a snakebite kit, a rusty bicycle, a hockey mask, a tranquilizer gun, a plate with brownie crumbs, about three tiki dolls from Boney Island ("Uh-oh," Ezekiel thought), an old woman's dress, an empty jar of honey, and her ruined green dress from their date.

"Izzy, you sure like to keep everything you own, eh?" he asked.

"Oh yeah! I mean, I have a photographic memory, so I remember everything perfectly, except I keep souvenirs of my adventures in case I ever get mind-wiped or suffer amnesia from a blow to the head."

Izzy then giggled and plopped down on the bed. She motioned for him to come over with a pat on the bed next to her. When he was seated next to her (a little nervous, since sitting next to a pretty girl on a bed gets a young man's mind running), she held the camera's screen up to him.

"Check out what I just video graphed," she said as she started to play the video.

Ezekiel watched the movie, shot from a slightly awkward angle, with bated breath. When he saw it was Duncan and Courtney, his eyes widened. They continued to grow as the punk and CIT went from first base, to second, to third, and finally all the way.

"Look at her wail," Izzy remarked, grinning madly. "She's really clinging to him, isn't she?"

Ezekiel's face was the biggest display of comical embarrassment. His face was dark red, his eyes were wide, and he was biting his fingers.

"Izzy," he whimpered over Duncan and Courtney's lovemaking, "this is wrong and immoral and... and... why can't I look away?"

"This is porn, my good Zeke," Izzy said, her head bobbing in time to the loins of the lovers on the screen. "And don't worry, all performers are eighteen or older."

Ezekiel barely nodded, unable to tear his eyes away from the small screen. Duncan and Courtney were really going at it now. "Why is her tongue hanging 'oot, eh?" he asked.

"That's the sign of really being shagged! Woot," Izzy declared, pumping her fists. "Wow, it's great, isn't it?"

She wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and giggled. "You enjoying this, Zeke?"

"Izzy... why did you tape them?"

"It was fun! And they never knew I did it either! Those two creeps are always mean to people, so I decided to video tape them having sex!"

Ezekiel sighed, then watched as Courtney and Duncan climaxed. Him laying on top of her, both panting hard and still coiled around each other. The camera screen went blue as the film stopped.

"Izzy," he said, crossing his arms and putting them over his lap, "you aren't... going to show this to anyone else, are you?"

"Why not?"

"It... doesn't seem right. I mean, there is the Golden Rule."

"You mean, 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you'? But people who follow that rule would never have any fun!"

"Well, I still think video taping a couple making love and showing it to others is... really wrong, eh. You cannot, Izzy."

She stared into his eyes for a little while, very puzzled. "But Courtney is awful to you," she said after pondering this, "and Duncan's real mean too. Don't you think they deserve this?"

"If we want to take revenge on them, we should do it to their face, eh," Ezekiel said. "I don't like the idea of doing something so wretched to them, it's something... that Heather would do."

The redhead flinched. "You... you think I'm being like Heather?" she asked, her voice and expression vulnerable.

"Only if you humiliate them by showing this to others, Izzy. Just please doo'nt show this to anyone else, eh."

Izzy exhaled and her head drooped. "Ezekiel, you've really sucked the fun out of me."

"Soo'ry," he said, patting your shoulder.

"Naw, I don't mind that much, I guess. After all, what are friends for if not to keep you from doing the wrong thing?"

She hugged him, and he patted her back. The redhead grinned at him, said, "But you wanna watch it one more time before I erase it?"

Ezekiel's red face and wide eyes came back. He stretched out his shirt's collar and muttered, "Um... sure."

Izzy squealed happily. "Watching porn with my friends! I've always wanted to do this!"

As the movie played again, Izzy was making a lot of comments:

"She has freckles on her chest! I knew it!"

"Boy, he's big... lucky Courtney."

"Wow, you think she's being a gymnast before? Look at her arch her back!"

"You could hear that scream even through the window!"

After it was over, Izzy made sure Ezekiel saw her delete the movie. Ezekiel was still just as red faced after the movie was over, looking very adorable to her.

She leaned over and placed a chaste kiss on his burning cheek. He looked over at her, and she smiled sweetly. "That's for keeping me from becoming like Heather, my Zeke."

"You're a good person, Izzy," he said, hunching over with his arms crossed over his lap. "I just... well, doo'nt you think it's a mistake for those two to be having sex?"

"Why not? They used a condom, you saw that."

"But they're not foolproof, what if Courtney gets pregnant?" he asked, then sighed. "Do you think he'll marry her?"

"Couples don't always to be married to have children together. My parents weren't at first."

"Oh," Ezekiel said, looking downcast. "But Courtney seems like a career girl, what if she has that baby? That would make her life very difficult, eh."

Izzy shook her head, smiling at him. When he looked at her confused, she said, "Courtney's only been a real bitch to you since day one, she continues to hold a terrible grudge towards you despite how you are nothing like she thinks you are, and here you are fretting over her future."

She took one of his hands in both of hers, and stared into his eyes. "Though you are quite old-fashioned, you are the kindest, nicest, most lovable prairie boy I know."

"And you're the wildest, most impulsive, wondrous girl I knoo', eh."

They stared at each other, starting to lean closer. He whispered her name as they closed their eyes...

A sudden knocking at the door startled them both. "Izzy?" Bridgette called in. "It's almost time for the party."

"Ugh... fine," Izzy called back. "Be down there soon, surfer friend!"

"I need your help, though. I want to double-check the lobby for cameras in case Chris Maclean hid any there, and I figured you might know best."

She and Ezekiel exchanged a look, then she sighed. Shrugging, she whispered, "Maybe later, my Zeke," and headed for the door.

* * *

Ezekiel could sum up how he felt about the dance with one word: loud.

The music deafened him, and he pulled his toque down over his ears. He was seated on one of the chairs in the side, thinking that if he stood up, the shock waves from the booming speakers would either knock him over or blow up his head.

Izzy had tried to get him to dance, but he explained that he wanted to watch at first. So he did, watching her dance violently. Her arms and legs were thrashing about, her hair whipping around, her hips popping to the side.

"Why aren't you dancing with her?" Noah, the only other one not dancing, asked him. "Aren't you two dating?"

"Well, I'm afraid she'll kill me with those moves of hers, eh."

Noah chuckled, and leaned back in his chair. "Oh Ezekiel, just because you're new to this whole dating scheme doesn't mean you should start with a girl who could possibly kill you."

"_Says the guy who's secretly seeing Eva_," he thought.

Ezekiel noticed that Noah was practically staring at Eva. The fitness buff had been dragged onto the dance floor by Katie and Sadie, and was now dancing, albeit rather slowly, with the twins.

Geoff and Bridgette were together, as were Duncan and Courtney; Ezekiel noticed the CIT and punk were a lot slower and not as active as the other couple. He was guessing that the sex had really tuckered them out.

"_Wonder if they'll do it a'geen after the dance,_" he thought, then slapped his forehead hard. "_You pervert! Get your head 'oot of the gutter, eh!_"

He tried to focus on the others. Trent, Cody, and Tyler were dancing nearby, though the musician had great moves and the jock was thrashing harder than Izzy.

When the song ended and another one came (blaring) on, Cody made a beeline to the twins and Eva. He started to dance and grin at them, which made Katie and Sadie burst into giggles. Though their amusement was changed to wonder as Trent approached Sadie.

"May I have this dance?" he asked, extending a hand towards the larger BFFF.

Sadie gasped, looking practically stunned. It took a strong shove by Katie from behind to get her best friend into gear. Soon Trent and Sadie were dancing, though she had a tendency to step on his toes.

Katie squealed with joy and hugged Cody. "He's asking her to dance, he's asking her to dance! Yeeeeeey!"

Cody would have replied, but she was cutting off his air supply with her tight hug.

Ezekiel noticed Eva was getting even less enthusiastic, and decided to do something about it. Secret relationship or not, Noah and Eva should be dancing. "So, why doo'nt you ask a girl to dance, eh?" he asked Noah, shouting over the music.

"No thanks, prairie boy."

"Oh, c'mon!"

Ezekiel stood up, yanked Noah out of his seat, and pushed him towards the dance floor (deliberately at Eva). The fitness buff seemed surprised as Noah stumbled towards her.

Trying to maintain composure, Noah straightened up and extended his hand. A happy smile crossed Eva's face, something hard to do, and she eagerly took it. Spinning the book worm around, he was on a roller coaster of a dance.

After that song was done, a slow song was played. Ezekiel watched as the couples held each other close, and it was so romantic that even he, a young male among many others his age, swooned and watched starry-eyed.

Bridgette was cuddling Geoff as the party animal gently swung them. Courtney looked ready to fall asleep against her boyfriend's chest. Sadie was practically glowing as Trent held her close, and Noah looked more than happy to share a dance with Eva that didn't involve him getting yanked around.

Katie and Cody were also dancing, but it was obvious the poor tech-geek didn't know what to do. He looked very nervous, and it wasn't until halfway through the song that Katie had to take control and pull him closer. She smiled reassuringly at him as they swayed.

Ezekiel remembered then that Izzy was here, and, though the thought itself almost made him sweat, he should really ask her to dance.

When he saw her, she was up to her usual unusualness. Izzy was holding an invisible partner, dancing with the imaginary person. She saw him watching her, and grinning, waving behind her fake partner's shoulder. Bounding over to him and ditching the invisible partner, she leaned over him.

"Are you going to ask me to dance now?" she asked.

Ezekiel swallowed, but before he could say yes, the song changed. Izzy let out a frustrated groan, and shouted, "Why did they pick a slow song that was only a minute long?!"

She stomped her foot, then looked down at Ezekiel. "Ready to dance yet, my Shortie Zeke?"

"No, not really, eh," he admitted, looking down; having psyched himself up only for it to come crashing down had sucked the energy out of him.

"Aww, it's okay, Zeke. Maybe later," she said, patting his shoulder. "After all, this party is gonna be all night!"

She ran back to the dance floor, and began to dance wildly again. Ezekiel watched her, enjoying seeing her so happy and as out of control as she wanted to be without hurting anyone.

Cody and Katie came to sit down next to him after another song. She was leaning on his shoulder, watching Trent and Sadie closely. "They say the best thing to heal a wounded heart is another heart helping it," Katie mused, squirming in joy. "Oh, I'm so-oooooo happy for Sadie and Trent."

"I think they actually look pretty nice together," said Cody, who was also watching the two dance. "They have been spending a lot of time talking to each other after Trent was voted off."

"I know, right? It's been hard for me, but I take comfort in the fact that she's so happy," she said. "Heck, we've always had to tolerate the fact that on dates and such."

"What if they start dating, eh?" Ezekiel asked, curious. "Are you going to be spending time with her still?"

Katie looked over at him, a little startled he was in the conversation. Though she wasn't fond of the prairie boy, she wasn't a grudge holder in any sense. "Well, I know Sadie's going to want time with him alone... guess I'll have to find me a boyfriend too or something."

"Anyone in mind?"

"Well, Cody here, maybe," she said, grinning at said boy. Cody chuckled nervously, then Katie added, "but I think he's waiting for Gwen to come back."

"Aww, Katie," Cody said, shrugging his shoulders and leaning back, "Gwen's not interested in me. I really don't think her breaking up with Trent is going to change that."

"Hey, maybe she'll want a shoulder to lean on!"

Katie demonstrated by leaning her cheek on his shoulder. "See? Girls like that, a shoulder to lean on. Getting this, Zeke?"

"Taking mental notes as we speak, eh."

"Good! Now Cody, matchmaker Katie is going to help you get together with Gwen, as she magnificently balances out helping Sadie," Katie said, "because like, my God, this resort needs more love."

The three continued to chat until another song began to play. The beat and feel of it made Ezekiel feel slightly uncomfortable; it was rather erotic sounding.

The mood of the song seemed to influence the dancers, and Ezekiel felt his body temperature soar as the couples began to grind.

Bridgette turned around and wrapped her arms around Geoff's neck from behind. Seeing her grind her backside into his waist as he swayed made Ezekiel gasp and look down. His face was as red as when he watched the sex recording.

"What are they doing, eh?" he asked Cody and Katie. "This is... this is..."

"Never seen grinding before, Zeke?" Katie asked, amused by his embarrassed state. "What, never watching Dirty Dancing? OhmiGod, Sadie and I love that movie!"

"Me too," Cody said.

"Really?! I thought boys hated it!"

"Hey, if it has Patrick Swayze, I'm all for it. Plus, I did love that dancing!"

As Cody and Katie continued to gab, Ezekiel dared to look up again. His face was burning as he watched, it was almost like watching sex on the dance floor.

Courtney was holding onto Duncan as they swayed their hips together, her sliding against him with her mouth hanging open in sexual tension. Eva and Noah were grinding sensually, their arms around each other. Sadie was trying to do the same thing with Trent, but she kept stepping on his toes; it eventually got to the point where Trent stood behind her and danced with her, holding her close.

Ezekiel noticed Izzy doing this with herself, looking a lot like the time she had practiced with a fake Bridgette.

Katie and Cody had taken to the floor, now dancing in the grinding, erotic way that the others had. Whether their moves came from that movie they had been talking about, Ezekiel didn't know; he had never seen it. What he did know was that, two feet away, the two were more randy than anything Ezekiel had ever seen in person.

Cody had his hands on Katie's butt, as if to help it as they ground their hips together. She had one of her hands on his butt too, her other arm draped around his shoulders. Cody was obviously trying to lead, but Katie was a little taller than him. Still, the flow of their sensual dancing was there, both were obviously turned on and enjoying it.

Ezekiel nearly cried out when Tyler collapsed in the chair next to him. The jock sighed as he watched the writhing couples. "I'd pay a million dollars for Lindsay to be here, dude," he said to Ezekiel, managing a smile.

The prairie boy tried to speak, but his throat was dry. He felt so inappropriately turned on, so red in the face and burning shame, that he was hunching over in his seat.

"Dude, Zeke, are you okay?" Tyler asked him, looking at him concerned.

"I... I think I have to leave, eh!"

Ezekiel ran out of the lobby, trying to hide his face. When he was out of the lobby, he leaned against the wall and sank against it.

"_Was this the kind of stuff mom and dad didn't want me exposed to_?" he thought to himself as he tried to collect his breath. "_Are all young people this sexually active and aware? I'm not even fully comfortable kissing Izzy or being in my swimming trunks around others, eh._"

"Hey Shortie, what are you doing out here?"

Ezekiel looked up to see Izzy, sweating and panting lightly, staring down at him. She was smiling, but she also looked concerned.

"I... I didn't feel comfortable in there, eh," he admitted, staring at his knees in shame.

"It was just dancing, silly."

"It was like watching people having sex! And having seen that recently, I knoo' what it looks like," he said, then he froze. The burning in his face was becoming something painful. He covered his blush and moaned, "Oh, I didn't mean that."

"Zeke," she said, kneeling down next to him, "are you okay? You're redder than the killer tomatoes I once had to fight off."

"I... I really doo'nt feel good," he said, in-between deep breaths. "I think I should go to my room."

"Okay, my Zeke. Here, I'll come with you."

* * *

**(Warning, contents are maturing, but just slightly.)**

Ezekiel sat down on his bed, taking deep breaths. He kicked off his shoes and watched Izzy, who was looking around his room.

"Something wrong, Izzy?"

"Your room! It's just so... so... so... CLEAN!"

She ran all over the place, admiring it as if she was in a historical or famous location. "How do you do it? I thought guys were all sloppy!"

"I keep things clean where I go, eh," Ezekiel said. "Comes from living at home all my life; mom freaks when things are a mess, so I learned that being clean avoids mother's freak-outs."

"Ha! My mom could care less, she stopped trying a long time ago," Izzy said. "You're so mature, Zeke."

"Please don't flatter me, my face is burning red enough, eh."

Izzy giggled, then headed for the window. She opened it up, and let the cool air pour over her body. Still a little tired from her wild dancing, she sighed happily at the feel of the evening air.

Her ears perked up as she heard the music from below. She listened as Ezekiel relaxed on the bed. The music was almost clear, it certainly was loud; Izzy's ears still rang. When the music changed to another sensual song, Izzy looked over at Ezekiel.

"Zeke, let's dance."

He looked over at her. His face was still adorably red, and he looked rather uncomfortable, but her spirit was not diminished.

"Wh-what?" he stammered.

"We can hear the music from up here," she said, smiling at him, "and I never got a chance to dance with you, my home schooled prairie boy."

"Izzy..."

"Don't you want to dance with me?"

She walked over and held out her hand. Ezekiel, though he was starting to shiver, took it. She pulled him up and close to her.

"Hmmm, you aren't that much shorter than me, now that I think about it," she said. "Still, I'm leading."

"O-okay," he stammered, his pulse and heart racing; his mind swam, and he briefly wondered how Izzy could be so calm.

"But you're not wearing this," she said, pulling his jacket up. Before he could react, she had pulled it off, and all he could do was grab his toque to make sure it didn't fall off.

"I want to feel you against me when we dance," she said, pulling him close. Her voice was getting husky as she purred, "How's that feel, my Zeke?"

Ezekiel swallowed in response. His thin gray shirt might as well be not there when Izzy pressed her hot body against him. Her breasts were pushed against his chest, her hips against his, even her shoulders were against his.

She pulled his toque back a little and rested her forehead against his. "Just go with it, my Zeke," she whispered. "I promise I'm not gonna hurt you or anything."

He swallowed again, and whispered back, "It's... okay, Izzy, I trust you."

Izzy smiled, not her usual crazy and wild smile, but an honest and warm smile. Her arms wrapped around his back, one leg around his, and she began to sway. Ezekiel tried to sway with her, but she shook her head.

"You have to go against my motions a little, Zeke. That creates the sexual friction."

Ezekiel had to force himself to keep breathing, especially when Izzy pushed her groin into his. He felt panic rising in his body as well as intense arousal. She couldn't move any closer, or she'd feel his...

"Don't worry, Zeke," she said as she pushed her hips as close as possible. He was fully aroused, and he, down there, was pressing against her; she was sliding against it, and he was overwhelmed in the flood of emotions.

"I wouldn't dance with you unless I was comfortable with this, if you're worried," she said, smiling that warm and caring smile at him.

"But... oh God...," he whimpered.

"Shhh, don't be ashamed," she whispered back. "Oh my Zeke, my nervous little prairie boy..."

She kissed his neck, and he shivered. Her hands dipped down, and she cupped his buttocks. She continued to sway her hips, focusing a little more on her upper body strength because Ezekiel's grip on her shoulders was tight; he was almost in danger of falling down.

"You're okay with me, Zeke," she hummed, kissing his neck again. "You and I dance well together, you just need to let go a little bit.

"Here, put your hands on my butt."

She stopped swaying and waited for him to do this. Ezekiel's hands were shaking, his body was still shivering. Izzy continued to smile at him, and put her hands on his shoulders in comfort.

After a few seconds, Ezekiel managed to put his hands on her buttocks. She wiggled around a little, getting her butt cheeks to be properly cupped by his hands.

"You gotta hold me tight, Zeke, because it's not easy to dance if your partner isn't holding you up."

"_Has she done this befur?!_" Ezekiel thought. When Izzy leaned against him and looked like she beginning to fall, he grabbed her butt to help support her.

Letting out a thankful purr, she pressed her body against his, sliding up and down. Her breasts were rubbing up and down his chest, her hips digging into his. She had her arms wrapped around his neck, almost hanging from the grasp.

Ezekiel didn't realize it at first, but he was dancing with her after a few seconds of her grinding against him. It was mostly his shoulders, hips, and knees that were moving, but he was finally able to grind back into her motions.

Izzy began to, very slowly, buck her hips against his. After a couple of these slow-motion humps, Ezekiel was doing it too. The prairie boy was moaning, very strained and grunting, unable to hold back the tension completely. Izzy was cooing and moaning as well, not as strained as his.

After some more of this dry humping, Izzy let out a happy, sensual moan. She kissed Ezekiel's neck some more, and her hot breath and lips caused him to shiver. "Oh, Zeke," she said, her voice very breathy, "this is... just right."

"Izzy..."

He couldn't hold back any more. His hands came up to her face, cupping it in a very gentle caress. Izzy looked at him with those bright green eyes, her hot breath on his face. They stared at each other for a few seconds, breathing hard.

Ezekiel kissed her, more passionately than he would have thought possible from him. Izzy returned it earnestly, moaning as she wrapped her arms around him. It didn't stop with one kiss, it continued in a very hot, wet, needing string of them.

Both of them felt very weak in the knees, and fell down on his bed. Izzy was on top at first, but she rolled over so that Ezekiel was. She wanted this, she wanted him to be lying on her, kissing her like this. Her heart was pounding, she could feel his.

With their arms wrapped around each other, hugging each other tight, the two were lost in the intense kissing that absorbed their minds. They couldn't think of anything else but continuing to kiss the other.

Both had wanted this for some time, and now they had it: the other in their arms, holding close as they kissed lovingly all night.

* * *

**End of Part 6.**

* * *

Pretty hot, eh? Well, this story isn't over yet, I still have a lot more to do. I hope you all liked Ezekiel and Izzy reaching first base!

Oh, and before anyone asks, yes, it's still going to be Gwen and Cody; he and Katie were just dancing.


	7. Night of the Second Date

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

All songs and movies are the property of their companies and producers.

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Nothing really serious here, except for some violent descriptions of zombie killing and other icky things. Also, Ezekiel and Izzy are mushy in this chapter, as mushy as Izzy can be.

* * *

**Chapter 7** - Wawanakwa Rising: Izzy 'til You're Dizzy

* * *

Ezekiel woke up from a small adrenaline surge. When his eyes opened, he was greeted by the peaceful, sleeping face of Izzy. She was lying on top of him, her breath coming out in happy hums.

His right hand was on her tousle of red hair, his left on the small of her back. She had one hand on his chest, her hand over his heart as if to measure the beats.

The prairie boy couldn't help but stroke her hair, and she actually began to purr in her sleep. Ezekiel smiled, looking at the tranquil expression on her face.

"_I've never seen her like this befur,_" he thought, then had to suppress some laughter. "_Then a'geen, I've never seen her sleep, eh. But she looks so beautiful like this..._"

As he continued to pet her, he realized how tired he still felt, but a wonderful kind of tired. They had been up late kissing, so hot and fervent that he remembered both of them wriggling, almost dry humping each other, in their efforts to be closer to be each other as they kissed. Ezekiel's lips felt sore and a little bloated, hers looked the same.

He couldn't remember feeling this good before, so warm deep down. This was something that he had only dreamed of when he fantasized about having a girlfriend. He never was wrapped up in sex when growing up (mostly because the only people to talk about it were his parents, and that was awkward), so cuddling and kissing a girl were as far as his imagination went at times.

Izzy was not the first girl he thought he would be doing this with, mostly because it was difficult the redhead staying still at all, even in her sleep. If he had fantasized about snuggling a girl, it most likely would have been Bridgette, and sometimes he thought about Katie, Gwen, and Beth. Izzy had only come into play when he started to watch the girl at Playa des Losers at TDI.

The girl sleeping on his chest now was so different at first, so wild and unpredictable, that Ezekiel couldn't fathom her. He had started off avoiding her, but eventually his curiosity overcame his common sense. Ezekiel once felt like studying Izzy from afar was like staring into an abyss, one that had no end and seemed to swallow him up the longer he looked in.

He found himself sympathizing over her after a while. No one really paid attention to her, and when they did, they acted afraid or weirded out. Only Owen was willing to give her time of day, but his own habits (and shoving her towards a serial killer) actually made her distance herself. That was the big sign to Ezekiel she was human: she had standards, and feelings.

"_I guess that's what brought us together, eh,_" he thought, smiling at her. "_Two lost souls, with no one to comfort us or be there for us, trying to cope with the insanity and loneliness. She found me, and I kept close to her._

"_I used to think she was crazy, eh. But now everything she does, even the strangest things, I know she does because it's either for the attention or because she just loves to do what comes to her mind. It's like she has no filter, and not only do I admire her for it, but I also kind of envy her._"

The redhead stirred in her sleep, and her eyes batted open. Her bright green eyes scanned up at Ezekiel, and her blissful smile became wider. "Good morning, my Zeke," she chirped.

"Good morning, my Izzy," he replied, smiling right back.

"What a night, huh? I think that one of the greatest nights of my life."

"Really?"

"Ayup. It tops the time I got to pilot a zeppelin, when I got to set off my first explosive, and even the time I got to use a sniper rifle! That night was wild... but you topped all of them."

She wriggled up and kissed his cheek. "Thank you for stroking my hair, it feels nice; I won't need a hair brush, 'cause I got you."

Ezekiel chuckled, then let out a happy sigh. "Izzy, I'm gonna ask a really stupid question, eh."

"Go ahead, I like them. Gives me a chance to give a really sarcastic answer."

"Well... does this mean we are going 'oot now, officially?"

"Oh, after that grinding dance and making out all night, my Zeke, I think it's time we take a break."

"You weren't kidding, eh."

"Sorry," she giggled, "but I did warn you."

Ezekiel stroked her cheek, and she nuzzled back happily. "Can we call each other boyfriend and girlfriend too?"

"So long as we call each other by the gender appropriate title."

He laughed. "You're so funny, Izzy."

"Mmm, thank you."

She kissed him. Ezekiel wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and continued to pet her hair. He couldn't help but moan when she darted her tongue into his mouth and out as quickly.

"Have we got time before breakfast to make out some more?" she asked, grinning playfully.

Ezekiel was hopeful that they would before he looked at his watch; the real time startled him. "6:12?" he read the time. "Whoa, we woke up early, eh!"

"Everyone usually is at breakfast by ten, right?"

"Yes. I think all the campers are there at that time, even the ones who like to sleep in."

"So we got about four hours of alone time together before we go have breakfast. Sounds good."

As they began to kiss again, something came to Ezekiel's mind. "Izzy?" he asked between kisses. "Are we... going to tell people a'boot us?"

"Mmmm, I think we should. It'd be best for clearing up their doubts and rumors."

Ezekiel cupped her face as he gave her a long, passionate kiss. "How will we be going a'boot telling them?"

"Don't worry your cute head and the toque upon it," she replied, rubbing her nose against his. "I'll make sure they all know."

* * *

"HEY EVERYONE, I'M EZEKIEL'S GIRLFRIEND NOW!!"

Everyone in the cafeteria jumped at Izzy's shout. Some glared at her, others stared in amazement. She bobbed on her feet happily as Ezekiel, blushing, scratched the back of his head. Tyler was the first to react.

"Yaaaaay," he cheered, leaping over and patting them on the shoulder. "Izzy and Zeke, officially dating!

"Oh, Izzy and Ezekiel," he mused. "Ezekiel and Izzy, Zeke and Izzy... sounds rather... Ezzy."

Izzy cackled. Ezekiel blushed even more. A lot of the others rolled their eyes.

Tyler thumped them on the shoulder again, and led them to the table where he was sitting alone. "So you two," he started, grinning mischievously, "what is couple Ezzy going to do?"

"Well first," Izzy said, "I have to remind you that only my Zeke can call me Izzy..."

"Oh, sorry."

"But since we cannot be called Ezzy when I'm E-Scope, I guess you can call me Izzy since you gave us that nickname."

"Groovy, dudes. Now tell me, you got any plans?"

Ezekiel and Izzy exchanged glances. "I suppose," Ezekiel spoke up, looking at Izzy, "I could always ask her 'oot a'geen, eh."

"I'd like that," she replied, beaming at him.

"Why not go see a movie?" Tyler suggested.

"You mean, like, a DVD or something, eh?" Ezekiel asked. "I was thinking a'boot going 'oot for the date-"

"No no no, I meant the movie theater," the jock explained. "Haven't you been to a movie theater before, Zeke?"

"Um, no, actually."

"Should have guessed that, since you haven't been to a restaurant before either. Izzy, I leave it up to you to educate your new boyfriend about the good things in the city!"

"Will do," Izzy said with a salute. "There is a movie theater within walking distance of here, we'll go this afternoon!"

"Oh, but the new episode of TDA is on today."

"Meh, I don't care," she said with a shrug. Izzy looked over at Ezekiel and said, "Unless you want to see it, my Zeke?"

"Nah, it's okay. I'd rather spend moo'r time with you, eh."

Izzy grabbed his jacket and yanked him over. Ezekiel barely had time to cry out before she mashed her lips into his, gave him a wet kiss, and released him. He stared at her, a very dazed and happy look on his face.

"You're so wonderful, my prairie boy."

Tyler smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Oh boy. Why do I have the feeling you two are going to the movie theater, but not remember what movie you'll be seeing?"

* * *

At the movie theater, Izzy and Ezekiel studied their choices. The ones that interested them most was one about genies, one about zombies, and one about a young girl who made her living as a street performer.

"I wanna see zombies," Izzy shouted, leaping up and down. "Zombies going after people who are so stupid, they cannot avoid... a zombie!"

Ezekiel smiled at her. "I do like to watch bad zombie movies on late-night TV. Is this one any good?"

"The Wrath of the Dead," Izzy mused, tapping her chin. "I heard it's really bad, but it's grossing well."

"Shall we see something else then?"

"Of course not! We can make fun of the movie by cracking jokes."

"Woo'nt the other people in the movie theater mind?" Izzy gave him a look that said, "_C'mon, you know me better than that._"

After buying their tickets, Ezekiel and Izzy looked at the concession stand to see if they wanted a drink.

"Six dollars fur a drink?" he exclaimed. "Is it limited edition or something, eh?!"

"I once tried to barter with them," Izzy said. "I offered a soda can, and asked them to fill it for a dollar and a quarter, because that's how much the machine charged me. The manager actually made me throw it away."

"What a jerk."

"Yeah, well, I did throw it away. At his head."

As they walked by the concession stand, a large man approached the stand. "What do you guys have?" he asked the employee behind the counter, the giant neon sign above his head.

Izzy smacked her forehead as she grabbed Ezekiel's wrist and hurried them along. "Let's go before I lose my temper and give that guy the same treatment I gave that creep couple at the restaurant."

"Oh, I doo'nt knoo', I think that's moo'r fun to watch than a movie."

She giggled. "You really do know how to flatter me, my Zeke."

When they were in their auditorium, Ezekiel grew worried when he saw that it was about half-full; if Izzy got bored during this movie, she would upset a good deal of people.

He desperately pondered over what to do. Though he would love to hear Izzy make jokes and shout at the movie, he knew that others wouldn't like it. Tyler had actually instructed him on what to do if Izzy got bored, but he wondered if that was a good idea...

* * *

_"Now Zeke man, let me tell you something about going to the movies with a girl," Tyler said to him when Izzy had left to get ready to go out. "You want to watch a horror movie or a romantic comedy."_

_"Why those two, eh? They seem rather different."_

_"Horror movies make a girl practically climb on you," Tyler said, chuckling. "Lindsay and I watched Stay Alive together, and she was in my lap before the third scene."_

_Ezekiel wondered if that was good or bad, because that might obstruct his view of the movie. The fact that a girl would be sitting on his lap didn't seen to top not being able to see the movie until later._

_"Now if she wants to watch a girlie chick flick, let her. Chicks really appreciate it when you watch it with them, even if it's boring as hell."_

_"My mother loves to watch Sleepless in Seattle, eh. That's not boring, but isn't that a chick flick?"_

_"Well yeah, but that movie's kind of an exception, dude. It's a classic, and they don't make romantic comedies like that anymore. If you're stuck in a boring chick flick, you have one of three missions:_

_"One, you hold her hand throughout the movie, and squeeze it during touching moments. Two, you slowly get your arm around her shoulders and pull her closer; don't try this unless you're sure, because your arm might go numb if you wait too long. Three, you make sure no one is seated nearby, and you two make out."_

_Ezekiel raised his eyebrows in surprise. Tyler chuckled, then he asked, "Oh, you two have made out, haven't you?"_

_"Errr, well," Ezekiel stammered, blushing bright red. He wanted to say, "I doo'nt want to kiss and tell," but Tyler was grinning as he translated his friend's nervous reply._

_"Awesome, dude. Now when watching a chick flick, just try to think of something to distract yourself when it gets really girlie. Like... what the actress looks like naked."_

_"Dude..."_

_"No man, I'm serious. I watched The Other Boelyn Girl with Lindsay, and the whole time, I was thinking, 'This would be so much easier if these two hot actresses weren't wearing thick, unrevealing dresses'."_

_When Izzy came down, she asked Ezekiel what he wanted to see. When he gave her the two movie suggestions Tyler had given him, Izzy shrugged._

_"Romantic comedies are boring," she remarked, "but horror movies are great! The music in them helps put me to sleep!"_

_Tyler slapped his forehead. "Maybe you two should watch an action movie."_

* * *

Ezekiel tried to find a place where no one else was nearby. He managed to find a few empty rows on the left side, and they sat near the wall.

"Are you trying to get us an out of the way place so that you can make out with me?" she asked, looking at him slyly.

He panicked. "No no no! I was, eh, trying to get us alone so you could, um, make... jokes... during the movie?" Ezekiel's voice slowly faded as Izzy continued to stare at him, her smirk unwavering. He sighed and pulled his toque down in front of his eyes. "Well yes, but only if the movie is bad, eh."

He waited for her to lash out at him, but all she did was yank his toque up off his eyes. "Maybe, my Zeke."

When they sat down, however, another couple sat right behind them. Ezekiel sighed, his hopes of kissing Izzy was completely dashed. Maybe he could hold her hand or wrap his arm around her shoulders instead.

"Yeah right," Izzy was shouting at the screen. "I'm not gonna go out and buy a $600 cell phone because I saw an ad in the movie theater!"

Ezekiel chuckled, smiling at her. "That does kind of seem silly, eh."

"Yes! Why do they play these commercials? We go to the movie theater because we don't like what's on TV, we want to _avoid_ commercials!"

Izzy let out a disgusted sigh as a musical ad for a sugar drink started to play. "This song _sucks_," she shouted. "It makes me not want to buy the drink, because I'm tasting copper in my mouth right now-"

She was cut off when her chair was kicked from behind, almost knocking her out of her chair. "Shut the hell up," the guy behind her snapped.

Both Ezekiel and Izzy turned around to glare at him. "Excuse me?" Izzy snarled. "I have a right talk here, you know."

"We're here to watch a movie, not listen to you talk," the guy said. He was a big guy with a Heather-like brunette hanging on his arm, a haughty look on her face and a steamed look on his.

"The movie's not playing right now, eh," Ezekiel exclaimed.

"Just turn around and shut up. And take off that stupid hat, I want to be able to watch the film."

Izzy's eye twitched. "No one," she growled, climbing up on her seat, "calls my boyfriend's toque... stupid!"

She grabbed the large drink that the couple had in-between them, and brought it down on the guy, drenching him with soda and ice.

The girl gasped as her date sputtered. He wiped his eyes as he shivered from cold and rage. "That's it, you bitch, I'm getting the manager. C'mon, Valerie!"

Ezekiel and Izzy watched them go. The prairie boy was torn between thanking Izzy for doing that, or chastising her for getting them kicked out this early. So he settled for both.

"Servers him right, but it's too bad we woo'nt get to see the movie now, eh."

"Not if I can help it. Follow me!"

Izzy grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the other side of the auditorium. Once there, they sat as close to the wall as possible. Izzy snatched Ezekiel's toque, turned it inside out so that the bobble was hidden, and began to stuff all of her red hair into the hat as she fit it on her head.

"Gimme your jacket too, my Zeke," she instructed. He did as told, and she quickly put it on herself.

"You want my pants too, Izzy?" he asked, mildly sarcastic.

"Later, dear, later."

About a minute later, the couple came back, a man in a suit and armed a flashlight with them. They first headed over to where Izzy and Ezekiel were originally seated, then they started to search all of the seats.

"It's like martial law when a customer is offended in a retail store," Izzy remarked as Ezekiel nervously watched the three search for them. "It's a sad evil that lurks in this world, and won't be stomped out until something else is."

"What's that, eh?"

"Jerks."

The manager and the couple were now searching the middle of the seats. Ezekiel began to nervously shake. How much trouble were they going to get into? Would they they be asked to leave? Would they call the police? Would they have to pay the six dollars for the drink?

"You think Courtney is the type of person who gets fussy at retail people?" Izzy mused, looking alarmingly calm. "I'll bet she is. Duncan too, only he's aggressive. I'll bet even Lindsay would get agitated at retail workers, she is a spoiled rich girl, despite how nice she is..."

"Izzy, they're going to be coming here soon, eh," Ezekiel whispered, really starting to shake now. His mind spun, and horrible images of possible outcomes came to mind: him being handcuffed, Izzy being tasered, him opening his wallet and giving six dollars to that creep...

"Lindsay's probably used to retail workers making mistakes," Izzy mused. "I mean, when she's got cleavage like that, any male cashier is going to be thinking, 'Okay, she wanted a cheese-boobie, large fries, and a diet Knockers-Cola."

"Izzy, they're coming, eh," he whispered frantically.

"Kiss me."

"What?"

"Here, like this!"

She grabbed his shirt and started to kiss him, running her fingers through his hair. Ezekiel very suddenly felt like he was in a protective shield, and nothing could get to him. He swooned and held her back.

"Hey you two."

A flashlight was shone in their faces, focusing on the inside-out toque on Izzy's head. "Is that them?" the manager asked the couple.

The guy glared at the two, also staring at the toque, which looked like an overstuffed beanie. The gal was tapping her chin, and she murmured, "I think it's them, but I'm not sure..."

Izzy looked Ezekiel, confused and desperate; her plan had obviously failed. The prairie boy sighed, and turned to the couple and the manager.

"Was bedeutet das?" he asked, then he frowned. "Ich war gerade mit meiner Freundin! Holen Sie sich, dass Licht aus meinem Gesicht!" **[1]**

"Oh my," the girl exclaimed, looking worried. "I'm pretty sure it's not them."

"Sorry to disturb you, sir," the manager said as the three hurried off.

"Lassen Sie uns in Frieden," Ezekiel shouted at them as they retreated. "Ihre Mutter war ein Hamster und Ihr Vater roch der Holunder!" **[2]**

After the manager and the couple left, he let out a long sigh of relief and looked at Izzy. She had the most impressed smile on her face.

"German," he explained. "Dad did always say it's the language that sounds toughest when angry-"

Izzy wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulled him close, and kissed him passionately. The two continued to make out throughout the rest of the commercials and the trailers.

"You're such a wonderfully brilliant genius," she cooed as she planted light smooches on his neck.

"_Mein Gott, ich liebe dieses Mädchen_," he thought, unable to stop from swooning. **[3]**

* * *

"Welcome back to Total Drama Action," Chris Maclean's cheerful voice was starting up the next episode of TDA, as the eleven ex-competitors watched anxiously (most of them anxious because they wanted him to get it over with).

"Last time, we were forced to even the teams, due to Trent's foul play during some of the previous challenges. Harold volunteered to join the Screaming Gaffers, and by 'volunteer,' I mean 'Duncan pushed him'! So they ventured into a jungle set, on an archeological search for a priceless idol!

"Harold proved to be a true Indiana Jones fan, almost as big as me! So dun-da-dun-dunnnn, dah dah daaaaah... he won! Leshawna was not happy, and she rallied the other campers to vote off Duncan for what he had done. Say hello to Courtney for us, punk boy!

"Now we are down to nine campers, and things are starting to liven up! Will our actors rise up in the night, or will they lay down with the dead? Is Gwen going to liven up too, or is Heather going to drag the team into the grave? And will Izzy and Ezekiel try to sneak onto the set again? They'd better not try, because they might be eaten alive!

"All these questions will be answered on this episode of Total... Drama... Action!"

Courtney huffed as the theme song played. "They'd better not try to sneak back on again," she snarled. "They don't deserve to be on TV if they're not part of the competition."

"They're on a date tonight, Courtney," Tyler grumbled. "They're at the movies, not the movie sets."

"Quiet," Eva shouted. "The episode is starting!"

On the screen, the campers were at lunch right in café tent. Gwen looked positively miserable; her eyes were heavy, and she had a kleenex to her nose. Leshawna was rubbing her back, trying to comfort the depressed goth girl.

"I am tho sthick of thith place," Gwen muttered, her voice slurred by her cold. She blew her nose hard and added, "I swear, I want to be voted off at this point."

"Don't say that, girlfriend," Leshawna chastised her. "A million dollars is worth a terrible cold."

Harold was watching from afar, gazing longfully at Leshawna. After he sighed, the camera cut to a Dressing Cam Confession.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - It stinks of nail polish remover, thanks to Lindsay.)**

**Harold** - "Watching Leshawna watch over Gwen is like watching an angel of mercy. She's so nice and beautiful and kind and yet still so tough and strong..."

\He swoons, then pounds the counter.\ "Dang it! Why couldn't I have that head cold so she'd watch over me? ... Oh wait, we're not on the same team anymore."

**Gwen** - "I really have had enough of this place! I didn't even _want_ to be here, and what have I got in return?"

\She slams her fist on the counter at every listing.\ "The crappiest and worst food ever made, a back stabbing bitch like Heather trying to undermine me every turn, knocked to the side at the end of the first season and dragged by contract into the next season, and then my heart _ripped out_ and _stomped_ because..."

\She sighs hard and rests her hands on her forehead.\ "... I really thought Trent and I could be something great. And then he completely lost it. I... I really wish the best for him after this show is over, I... I just..."

\Gwen screams out in frustration, and throws a jar of red make-up, splattering it all over the mirror where her head is. She sinks down on the counter and sobs.\

* * *

Chris Maclean entered the cafeteria. "Okay actors, we'll be starting the challenge tonight when the sun starts to go down. Because this type of movie should only be shown at night!"

"Is it a vampire movie?" Lindsay asked, looking pleased. "Like something from _Twilight_? Ooo, I love that series!"

Harold scoffed. "Those are emo, glittery-faced, non-transforming, pansy vampires. They'd get their ass handed to them by real vampires."

"Hey," Lindsay whined. "Darold, they're not emo!"

"All young people are emo," Chris remarked, smirking. "But no, not vampires. Another form of undead!"

"Mummies?" asked Owen.

"Weird goth people?" asked Heather, looking at Gwen.

"Zombies?" Harold exclaimed.

"Correct, Harold," the host declared. "Tonight, in honor of the awesome movie The Wrath of the Dead, now playing in theaters everywhere, we are going to be doing the Zombie Movie!"

"Most excellent awesome," Harold cheered, leaping up and pumping his fists.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Night of the Living Confessions!**

\The campers talking to the camera are trying to talk around the red paint stain in the center of the mirror.\

**Harold** - "Ooo, I see Chris already has fake blood set up! Awesome! I've seen all the zombie films, even the really crappy one, The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies! No, I didn't make that title up. Hehe, what idiots, huh?" **[4]**

**Beth** - "I don't know if I really want to do this, zombies really freak me out! I wonder if Justin will hold my hand during this challenge..." \She blushes and swoons at the thought.\

**DJ** - "BLOOD ON THE MIRROR!? IT'S THE ZOMBIES!! AAAAAAH!" \He runs out screaming.\

**Lindsay** - "Ezekiel? Y-Scope? Are you hiding in here again? Did you two trash this place?"

* * *

Gwen looked completely unmotivated. Leshawna was still trying to comfort her, but Heather and DJ were too nervous.

"We really going to see zombies?" DJ whimpered, exchanging a glance with Heather.

"They're probably just interns dressed up as zombies who are instructed to bite us," Heather said.

"_Bite_ us?!"

"LEGAL says we are not allowed to have our interns bite you," Chris said. "But we have a wild surprise for you. Most of the fake zombies are actually zombie buffs who offered their expert make-up and zombie acting skills into this?"

"You hired zombie buffs?" Leshawna asked, startled.

"There are zombie buffs?" Heather asked, just as incredulous. "What nerds."

"Careful, Heather," Chris said. "If they know you're making fun of their zombie pride, you might end up as a zombie's raw dinner!"

This actually unnerved Heather more than she thought it was. She grabbed the arm of the nearby person and whimpered. DJ looked rather confused by this.

"The rules are simple," the host continued. "Your two teams are mercenaries, as experienced with zombies as you may or may not be. You are being paid to go into the infected town, infiltrate the lab where the zombification immunity vaccine is. You are all armed with paint ball pistols that are filled with red paint, and you will find refills throughout the town.

"Just don't let any zombies grab you! They have fake blood on their hands, and if you get fake blood on you, you are dead!"

Harold looked annoyed by this. "Zombies can't infect you just by grabbing you, gosh!"

"Well Harold, our interns cannot bite or scratch you," Chris said, shrugging. "Sorry dude, but these are going to be the rules. Just think of it this way: most people who get grabbed by zombies in the movie get killed."

"Hmmm, that's true," Harold said. "But we're mercenaries, and well-armed people are always killed the zombies, or are the evil government agents there to kill survivors."

"This one's different, it's _my_ zombie movie," the host declared, throwing his hands up. "Oh, and everyone, no trying to cheat! If you're grabbed, you're out! But of course, if you shoot any zombies or fellow mercenaries, your team or not, they are out!"

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Still with the red paint on the mirror.)**

**Heather** - "I'd like to quickly point out that there is nothing between DJ and I. I know you nerds out there love to take anything out of context. So shove it."

**Justin** - "Zombies? UGH! They are, like, more anti-me than Noah is! Rotting skin, matted hair, hollow eyes..." \Justin begins to shiver and hugs himself.\

**Owen** - "Boy, Harold's really into this. I'm glad he's on our team, because those smelly zombies are bad!" \He farts.\

**Gwen** - \She doesn't say anything. She just sinks down on the counter and sighs, looking very downcast.\

* * *

"Just shoot him!!"

Izzy's loud order at the character on the screen was met with a lot of "shhhh's" and angry comments. This had been the second time she had shouted at the screen, and the protests were stronger this time.

"He's been staring at this zombie for half a minute," Izzy grumbled to Ezekiel. "Half a minute, I counted, and he didn't even really know the guy. Why doesn't he just shoot him!? He had no problem blowing away his own brother when he became a zombie."

Ezekiel had to agree. It also upset him that the crowd was shushing Izzy over a couple comments, when earlier, during a sex scene that was long and rather embarrassing (for him), the guys were whooping, cheering, and wolf-whistling. No one shushed them, but they'd shush Izzy.

The movie continued to draw out, and Izzy was getting really tired of human beings interacting. "I'm here to see zombies," she shouted when she reached her limit. "I wanna see ghouls eating people!"

Once again, people shushed her. The people sitting in front of them looked around to glare at her, but Izzy didn't notice.

"Zeke, is there any chance I could enter this movie and force them to input more zombies?"

"Soo'ry, I doo'nt think so."

Izzy got her wish soon, and it wasn't what she wanted. The feisty punk girl, who both Izzy and Ezekiel liked, was bitten by a zombie. This shocked both of them, but not as much as when the main character put a bullet in her skull without so much as warning her.

"Man, I didn't even get to nail her," he muttered to his friend, who shrugged indifferently.

"DICKWEED," Izzy hollered over the laughter. Once again, people shushed her and shouted for to be quiet, but the redhead had had enough.

"Let's go, Zeke," she said, grabbing his wrist and pulling him out of the theater. Though Ezekiel wanted to stay a little longer, he also was very irked by this development in the movie.

"It was like some stupid male fantasy written by a jerk," Izzy lamented as they left the theater. "He saved hot babes that were all the more happy to have sex with him, the only girl who wouldn't they kept trying to make her look like a bitch, and he was such a Gary Stu!"

"A what?"

"A Gary Stu is a male character who's far too perfect for his own good, the male version of a Mary Sue," she explained. "See, he had perfect aim with guns, he could punch zombies heads off, he could use a sledgehammer and over large weapons without looking tired, and all women except for Amanda wanted him.

"And since Amanda didn't want him, they tried to make her look like a witch and then killed her as a punch line."

Ezekiel nodded, fascinated. "How do you knoo' these things, Izzy?"

"You learn a lot when you surf the web," she explained, grinning. "Course, you can get scarred a lot too." She leaned in and whispered in his ear, "There's a lot of weirdos and psychos on the internet!"

"So I've heard. Sounds creepy."

"Not all of it. I like to change Wikipedia pages to something fun, like how I made a page for fluffernutter. Fluffernutter didn't exist until I put it up there, and suddenly, everyone knew what fluffernutter was and wanted one!" **[5]**

"What is a fluffernutter?"

"Peanut butter and marshmallow sandwich."

At first, this sounded revolting to Ezekiel, but then he actually thought about it, and it sounded good. The two continued to chat as they walked, talking about anything from fluffernutter to zombies.

"I wish I could watch a real zombie movie now, a good one," Izzy said. "I know the zombie fatalities in that movie were great, but it lacks appeal when your character is an asshole."

"Want to go rent a movie?"

"Nah, I have a better plan," Izzy said, her wild grin forming on her face. "Why watch a zombie movie when you can live one?"

* * *

Harold lowered his paint ball pistol as the zombie with a "fatal" head shot collapsed.

"Always go for the head," he said. "Zombies can only be destroyed by a bullet to the head."

His Screaming Gaffers nodded, and then the zombie moaned on the ground, "Actually dude, we're instructed to go down if you get us in the chest too."

"Oh okay thanks."

"No problem. Nice shot, by the way."

"Thanks, and _awesome_ make-up job, by the way."

"Aww, thanks."

Harold looked around at his teammates. "Now normally you don't split up in horror movies, but it is best in a zombie movie. Beth and Justin, you be with me. Owen and Lindsay, work together, and Lindsay? Make sure to watch over Owen, he'll attract a lot of zombies, if you know what I mean?"

Lindsay cocked her head to the side in confusion, obviously not getting what Harold meant. Owen nodded and patted his stomach. "No zombie's making a meal out of me!"

Harold, Justin, and Beth headed off. Lindsay and Owen walked a different way, her looking still confused but alert. She didn't want to let Owen down, because not only did Harold instruct her to watch him, but she liked him a lot.

"So... Omar, no wait, Owen, right?"

"Yep."

"Do you...," she tapped her painted lips in deep thought, "um, do you like anyone here on the show?"

"Oh, I like everyone," he said. "I think everyone here is really cool and fun! Except for Heather, but maybe she just needs a hug."

Lindsay wondered if one of Owen's giant, warm hugs could change Heather; however, this was not what she meant.

"No, I mean, do you, like, _like_ anyone here?"

Owen was confused. "Um, what's the difference between like and _like_ like?"

"_Like_ like is a crush, I guess."

Before Owen could reply, a trio of zombies came shambling towards them on Lindsay's side. Lindsay squealed in terror and fired wildly, but all of her shots missed. The three zombies pounced her, smearing fake blood on her.

Owen, recovering from the shock, let out a loud cry and shoved the zombies away. Pointing his gun dramatically, he blasted each of them with accurate paint ball shots. The zombie imitators collapsed.

The big guy propped up Lindsay's head; the blond was pretending to act dead, remember Chris's rules and following them (maybe just a little too closely). Owen, swept up in the drama, let out a pained howl.

"No, not Lindsay," he wailed. "Why her? Why couldn't it have been me? My Lindsay, why were taken from me?"

He held her by the shoulders and gave her a long, sad kiss. Lindsay's eyes shot open, but she closed them in fear Chris might see her not acting dead. When the kiss was over, she also had to avoid swooning; Owen was actually a pretty good kisser.

"I will avenge thee, my Lindsay, in the name of See's Candy!"

Owen picked up her gun, holding it and his own gun in the air, ran off roaring. The "dead" zombies looked up and exchanged glances.

"Wow, dude, that was totally dramatic," one of them said.

"Yeah man. Lucky duck, he got to smooch that girl."

"I thought that was a little icky, she was dead."

"Well, not really. See? She's alive."

"Yeah, but she was acting dead."

"We're acting like dead zombies, but we're talking."

"Ah, touché."

Lindsay simply lay there, still pretending to be dead. This was actually perfect for her, because not only was she lying down comfortably, but it gave her time to think about her predicament with Owen and Tyler.

Elsewhere on the set, DJ was huddling in a corner, whimpering in fear. Heather was nearby him, while Leshawna and Gwen were off as another group.

"DJ, suck it up," she said, blunt as ever. "We're not getting anywhere with you like this."

He looked up with big, sad eyes. She groaned and rolled her eyes. "Look, do you want me to hold your hand or something?"

The big guy nodded, and she, very regretfully took his hand. Leading him on, she tried not to think about what others would say about this, but she also realized there had been many more embarrassing things that had happened to her.

They traveled for some time without being attacked by zombies, which puzzled Heather. The answer to that came eventually, when they saw a bunch of the zombie imitators with paint shots on them lying on the ground.

"Someone's ahead of us," Heather remarked. "DJ, c'mon, we have to pick up the pace!"

"I don't mind, so long as the zombies are dead," DJ whimpered. "I don't want them to be eaten by them."

"Dude," one of the collapsed "zombies" said, "we're not allowed to bite you."

"Quiet, you fool," one of the other undead actors hissed, "we're supposed to be dead!"

"I don't know why," a third zombie said. "I mean, I don't think that redhead or the boy in the toque are in the contest."

This baffled Heather. Redhead? Toque? They rang bells, but no one in the contest was either of those... except Izzy and the sexist, home schooled boy.

* * *

Chris Maclean was monitoring the screens, only half-concentrating. He might have noticed Izzy and Ezekiel running around, shooting every fake zombie they could with paint ball pistols; however, the handsome host had an attractive lady on sitting next to him.

"Like what you see, babe?" he asked slyly.

The woman shrugged, moving her large (and fake) breasts. It was a motion Chris Maclean noticed and appreciated. He pulled her closer and said, "After the challenge, you want to go see Wrath of the Dead?"

"I hate zombies. This is boring to watch too."

This struck a sour note to Chris. Sure, he was only seeing her because of limited reasons (and very few of them about her personality); however, her not liking cool things like zombies or the show he was on irked him deep down. It was almost embarrassing.

But hey, she had a large rack and was more than eager to spend time draped on his shoulder and more for some TV time. That more than made up for it.

Chris watched as Justin was dragged down by zombies. Harold and Beth wildly shot at the zombies, then made a break for it, shouting apologies to Justin. The male model, smeared with fake blood all over, left in a furious huff.

"Chris Maclean," he shouted at a camera, "if this fake blood doesn't come out of my hair, you are going to hear from my lawyers and my agencies!"

This actually made Chris worried a little; if anyone had legal power, it would be Justin, To calm himself down, he pulled his bimbo onto his lap and made out with her, squeezing two of the reasons he was seeing her.

* * *

In the game, Harold and Beth were busy fighting more zombies. They were surrounded, and the farm girl's gun was clicking empty. "This is it, Harold," Beth wailed. "I'm sorry!"

Harold snarled as he shot another zombie. "I'll see peace on earth if I have to shoot every one of these bastards myself!"

The zombies closed in. Beth wrapped her arms around Harold and whimpered, awaiting the inevitable zombie feast. Harold was still shooting, but he would soon be overrun...

Paint balls shot from the shadows, nailing the zombies. Mowed down in a flurry of red paint, soon all of the ghoul impersonators were lying on the ground.

Harold and Beth were surprised, and even more when Ezekiel and Izzy stepped out of the shadows, holding paint ball pistols up in the air.

"What are you two doing here?" Harold asked.

"Killing zombies and chewing bubble gum," Izzy replied, blowing at the barrel end of the pistol, "and we're all out of bubble gum."

"You can thank Izzy, she found us our guns, eh," Ezekiel said. "Also, I'm pretty sure she hit more of those zombies."

"That's right, I'm bad!"

Harold and Beth managed to overcome their shock, then the lanky nerd cleared his throat. "Well, thanks for saving us," he said. "And I gotta say, awesome shooting and timing."

"Just like in the movies," Izzy exclaimed. "Oh, but not Wrath of the Dead. That movie sucked."

"Thanks for saving me eight and a half bucks."

"You're welcome. Now, do you know where more zombies are? My bloodlust is not sated yet."

"There's some back there that we escaped from," Beth said, pointing back the way they had come from.

"Thank you. Come, my Zeke," Izzy said as she sprinted off in the direction Beth pointed. "In Amanda's memory! For the punk girl!"

"For the punk girl, eh!"

* * *

The contest was over soon enough, after Harold and Beth found the zombification immunity vaccine and returned it to the trailer grounds. All the others were there, most of them smeared with fake blood.

"Well done, you two," Chris Maclean said, his arm around his well-downed companion. "The Screaming Gaffers have won the day again!"

Owen and Lindsay burst into cheering, the big guy hugging Harold and the blond beauty hugging Beth. Justin was too busy trying to scratch out the fake blood on his skin, looking into a mirror with a disgusted look.

The Screaming Gaffers hung their heads in shame. DJ and Heather was smeared all over with the fake blood, and though Leshawna and Gwen were clean, the goth girl looked the most crestfallen. Leshawna was eyeing the bimbo Chris had his arm around, disgusted by the host's obvious flaunting.

"I'll see you four at the Award Ceremony tonight, so pick your favorite loser," Chris said. "Shame none of you have a hot date like I do. Like you, Gwen!"

He laughed, cruel as usual. Most expected Gwen to glare or make a sarcastic remark back, but the goth girl let out a pained sob. She walked over to the ladies' trailer and slammed the door behind her.

This only made Chris laugh louder. Some of the others, especially Leshawna and Beth, were glaring hateful daggers at him; however, karma retribution came not from them, but a red paint ball hitting the host on the back of the head.

After Chris flinched, he felt back there and his hand came back with bright red paint. He screamed in panic, running away shouting, "Make up! Help help, I have a hair emergency! Yargh!"

The actors, though most laughing, looked for who fired that paint ball. They only saw a glimpse of fluttering red hair and a bouncing toque bobble.

* * *

Leshawna went inside the girl's trailer. Gwen was sitting on her bed, more upset than ever.

"Gwen girlfriend," she said, putting her arm around the goth's shoulders, "don't let that asshole's words get you down. You know he's just a mean jerk."

"I cannot help it," Gwen whispered. Her voice sounded distant. "I feel so terrible. I didn't want to do that to Trent but... but..."

She sighed and hung her head. "Leshawna, I want you to vote me off."

"Oh no no no, sister. You almost won last season, and you can win this time-"

"I don't want to," Gwen said firmly. "I never wanted to join this God damn contest. I'm sick of it all.

"I'm sick of the food that makes me want to puke, made specifically for that! I'm sick of dealing with back stabbers like Heather and schemers like Justin! And most of all, I'm sick to death of feeling this awful."

The goth girl shook her head. "I don't deserve to be here anymore. Just vote me off."

"Gwen, I'm not going to do that to you."

"Then I'll vote for myself, and I'll ask DJ and Heather to vote me off too. I'm not staying here any more, not one more torturous, self-deprecating moment."

Leshawna wanted to argue, but she had seen this kind of attitude. Gwen looked depressed and unwavering, and Leshawna knew, deep down, she'd never convince her friend otherwise, especially in the short amount of time she had.

"Gwen, I want you to promise me something."

"What?"

"You're going to keep in contact with Leshawna, and you'll cheer for her at the finals."

Gwen managed to smile, very briefly, and nodded. She hugged her friend, and when Leshawna hugged her back, the goth girl began to cry.

* * *

Ezekiel and Izzy made it back to Playa des Losers 2 around late evening. They were laughing, their arms wrapped around each other's shoulders.

"I got such a good head shot there," Izzy said, miming the way she aimed and shot the back of Chris's head. "Did you see that? I mean, if only it was a real sniper, that would have been even more awesome!"

When they were in the hotel, they were met with the very angry face of Courtney. "You two," she said, very slowly and brimming with fury, "snuck on the set... AGAIN!!"

"Yep," Izzy said happily, hugging Ezekiel from the side and kissed his cheek. "What a wonderful second date!"

"You cannot do this," Courtney roared, stomping over to them. "You two immature, lawbreaking, despicable, uncontrollable-"

Bridgette came running up to them, looking frantic. "Guys! Courtney! Please come, I need your help!"

Courtney still looked furious and grudgingly followed Bridgette, as did the young couple. Bridgette led them to a wet bar, which was set up for any adults at the resorts.

However, the only patrol was Tyler. He sat with his head in his shoulders, a drink in his hand. **[6]**

"Has he been drinking?!" Courtney exclaimed.

"Yes, I think he has," Bridgette remarked.

"How much?"

Tyler moaned when he heard the four coming towards them. "Ish... ish that Courtney? Tell her to shtop yelling, my earsh could bleed."

"I think quite a lot, eh," Ezekiel muttered.

"Everything ish ruined," Tyler continued to sob. "My girlfriend... she'sh kishing another man! She wantsh that fat bashtard and not me!"

The drunk jock pounded the counter again. "Why? Why?!"

Bridgette rubbed his back. "Tyler, it's not over. Owen kissed Lindsay, not the other way around-"

"But she didn't fight him," the jock shouted. "And I'm shure Chrish found it hilarioush! He'll mention it next epishode, I know it!"

Courtney nervously drummed her fingers on her other hand. "Maybe you've had enough, Tyler-"

"That bashtard, he'sh sho happy to break people up," he continued. "He broke up Gwen and Trent, he wash laughing when they shplit, grinning and smirking and sho proud of himself for caushing them such heartbreak!

"Now he'sh doing it to me too," Tyler wailed. "And it's not good enough that he'sh letting that fat jerk smooch Lindshay... but... but... he'sh making out with my mother!"

Courtney and Bridgette gasped and covered their mouths. Ezekiel and Izzy nervously looked around. "Um, that was your mom?" Izzy asked, uncertainly.

"Yesh! She... she musht have got implantsh shince I lasht shaw her," he muttered, gagging slightly. "She'sh... she'sh such a gold digger... I shtill cannot believe she blew ush off during the cushtody... all she wanted wash money."

"Probably why she's seeing Chris Maclean," Izzy remarked. The others looked at her, letting her know that was inappropriate. "Oh, sorry."

Tyler continued to sob into his arms, his drink falling down and spilling out the side. The four continued to watch, until someone approached them from behind.

"Guys?" It was Cody. "Is he all right?"

"I don't think so," Courtney remarked. "He needs to go up to his room and sleep this off; he's going to end up with one hell of a hangover. Cody, can you do it?"

"Sure." As the tech-geek started to prop the sloshed jock on his shoulder, Courtney was instructing Cody. "Make sure he's on his side. If he throws up and he is on his back or chest, he could drown in his own vomit."

"That's a terrible way to go," Ezekiel whimpered.

"Yeah, not the way I want to go," Izzy said. "I want my death to involve explosives, at the least."

Courtney ignored them as she continued to instruct Cody. "It'd be best if you watch over him for a little while. Call one of us if you need to be replaced, but don't leave his side."

"How do you know all this?" he asked her.

"Part of being a CIT, Cody. I have to know what to do when someone tries to drink themselves into oblivion."

"Who's trying to drink themselves into oblivion?" Gwen was standing there, staring at the group. She had her suitcases in both hands.

"Gwen! Um... uh...," Cody stammered, looking between the drunk Tyler dangled on his shoulder and the goth girl of his dreams. "Tyler's... really upset."

"He looks like someone went at him with a wet tenderizer," she remarked.

It was a difficult moment for Cody. More than anything, he wanted to comfort Gwen about her being voted off TDA, to be there for her and be her friend; however, Tyler was starting to moan, sounding ready to throw up.

"I've... got to watch over Tyler for a little while," Cody explained. "Courtney, could you take over for me in about an hour?"

"Sure thing, Cody."

"I'm going to bed then," Gwen said. "Bridgette, could you show me where my room is?"

"Of course, Gwen."

Cody watched in sorrow as Gwen left, all hopes he could talk to her dashed. He left with Tyler, Courtney following them. As Bridgette led Gwen away too, Ezekiel and Izzy were left alone.

"Wow," Izzy said. "Sounds like we missed a really interesting episode."

* * *

Ezekiel and Izzy sat in the cafeteria together, late at night. The kitchen was closed, but because the prairie boy had made friends with the staff, they let him make a late night treat for him and Izzy.

"What did you make for me?" she asked, twiddling her fingers anxiously.

He grinned and set a plate in front of him, as well as a glass of milk. She looked at the sandwich and opened it, giggling as she saw the peanut butter and marshmallow.

"Fluffernutter," she cried out, and wolfed it down. Ezekiel was only half done as Izzy licked her fingertips.

"Did you like it?" Ezekiel asked her.

"Best fluffernutter I've ever had."

Before he could react, Izzy was sitting on his lap and straddling him. She took his head in her hands and lifted it up, grinning. She began to kiss him, her breath smelling like bread, marshmallow, and mostly peanut butter.

"A good fluffernutter puts Izzy in the mood," she said. "I'll have to add that on the Wikipedia page, that it is also a mild aphrodisiac."

"I'll have to make them moo'r often, eh."

"Ezekiel and fluffernutter," Izzy purred, smiling flirtatiously at him, "that's all Izzy needs."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, and they kissed happily. It had, overall, been a great day for them.

* * *

**End of Part 7.**

* * *

Ezekiel and Izzy may be getting better, but looks like Cody, Gwen, and Tyler have some hard times ahead of them. Now that Gwen has joined PdL2, it's time for her healing process to begin, amends to be made, and Cody to comfort our favorite goth. For those of you who think she wouldn't be that upset, her official profile defines her as someone who is pessimistic and keeps herself unhappy.

I'd also like to point out, to prove I'm not making her a villain, that Courtney will not be holding Tyler's drunken period against him. She's not a slanderer like Heather is, and though she doesn't like Tyler that much, it's her job as a CIT to help set people straight.

Also, I'd like to point out that there is no movie called Wrath of the Dead.

**[1]** - "What is the meaning of this?" "I was with my girlfriend! Get that light out of my face!"

**[2]** - "Let us make out in peace!" "Your mother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries!"

**[3]** - "My God, I love this girl."

**[4]** - Yes, I am seriously not making up that movie title. There is a movie called The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies. It was on MST3K. It's a "zombie" movie with over ten really bad musical numbers, and you only really see zombies for the last ten minutes of the film.

**[5]** - Fluffernutter has existed for some time, but my brother refused to believe me when I told him this; he thinks I made up the word and created the Wikipedia page.

**[6]** - The drinking age in Canada is 19, so Wikipedia LIED to me (they're only right about fluffernutter). Tyler's only able to drink because they left the wet bar unattended. Please people, drink responsibly and at the right age.


	8. Ferris Fury, Flying Firetruckin'

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Izzy is dropping the F-bomb a few times in this chapter. Also, I know Cody is an only child, but he is not in this story.

This chapter isn't too much about Izzy and Ezekiel, but I'll make up for it next chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 8** - Through Sickness and E-Scope, 'Til Carnival Do We Part

* * *

Whatever Gwen had caught when on the set of Total Drama Action, Ezekiel caught it fast.

"I'm such a wimp," he explained to Izzy when lay in bed. "Not being around other kids when growing up made my immune system completely unprepared, I'll bet."

Izzy cared for him, but since he slept throughout the next two days, Izzy was left with little to do. This had taken her by surprise: Izzy, aka Kaleidoscope, had nothing to do! She never knew how much she could rely on one person to make her days more interesting.

"_Is this how my Zeke felt during the entire duration of TDI?_" she thought to herself. "_This... utter boredom and loneliness?_"

She tried to hang out with the others, but it was no good. Tensions were rising again, even in her. Katie was trying to get Cody and Gwen together, but the goth girl's depressed and bitter attitude made him too afraid to approach her. Tyler was avoiding everyone, depressed and very ashamed. Bridgette wasn't any fun because she was working to not only keep her relationship with Geoff going; Izzy helped out in this, and she had a fleeting suspicion why it was difficult and not just on Bridgette's part...

Courtney and Duncan were really tired a lot of the time, glowing when with each other. Izzy knew it was because they had been having a lot of sex (she knew this because she spied on them, but she didn't film them anymore). She even spied them in the pool very late at night, just like Eva and Noah, but going at it.

Izzy knew Geoff and Duncan were good friends, and Duncan, not the most moral of guys, was probably bragging to the party guy. This was a one-two punch to Geoff. One reason was that Bridgette barely kissed him anymore, and he felt like he was failing to be a good boyfriend. Two was that, and Izzy felt this probably more than Geoff did, Duncan had voted his friend off because he wouldn't stop kissing Bridgette, and now it seemed difficult to keep the punk off of the CIT.

"_Ezekiel's worry about Courtney getting pregnant gets stronger every day,_" Izzy thought as she watched Duncan and Courtney beam at each other once at breakfast.

All this and more was slowly wearing out Izzy's patience. She hadn't so much as kissed her boyfriend in two days, she had nothing to do, her friends were all desperately trying to keep or even just start relationships, and most of all, the couple that she liked least here was enjoying life at the fullest.

It was breakfast the third day of Ezekiel's sickness that the dam broke. One of the staff members, Manuel, informed her she had a call. Izzy went to take it, and while she was gone, Bridgette was going through a personal hell of her own.

Duncan was kissing Courtney's ear and cheek, and the CIT was, for once, giggling happy, not shoving him away and calling him something like "ogre."

Geoff was beaming at his friends. Gwen looked like she was going to be sick, and Bridgette was sure she was going to be sick. Eva, also at their table of six, looked quite annoyed.

Inspired by the kissing, giggling couple, Geoff wrapped an arm around Bridgette and tried to pull her close. Bridgette wriggled her way out and faced Gwen.

"So Gwen, I have to ask you something," she said earnestly, her tone implying what she had to say was dire and sensitive, "how... are... things between you and Trent?"

Geoff had slumped in his chair when Bridgette rejected him, but now his attention was back up because he cared for Gwen a great deal. The goth girl sighed, holding her coffee mug tightly in both hands.

"We've... talked," she said. "I learned why he really obsessed over nine. But... we're going to stay as friends."

"Oh well, that's good, right?" Bridgette asked, hopeful.

"Yes, it's good," Gwen replied. "It is nice to have someone to talk to."

Her tone implied so much more to Bridgette, but before the surfer girl could get more information out of her, Duncan let out a laugh.

"You can talk to us, Gwen, if I manage to keep my princess off of me for a minute or two."

Courtney let out an indignant cry, and started a slap-fight with Duncan. He cackled as she fought, and soon she was laughing too. Watching Duncan play around with Courtney gave Bridgette a tension headache. The surfer girl abruptly stood up.

"Bridge, what's wrong?" Geoff asked, his voice almost desperate.

"Nothing, Geoff," she said, glaring at Duncan. "I've just lost my appetite."

She walked off, not looking back once.

Eva scoffed. "Looks like Blondie has a chip on her shoulder."

Geoff looked over at Eva, a pitiful expression on his face. When she shrugged, Geoff turned towards Gwen.

"Don't look at me, Geoff," she said. "Aren't you her boyfriend?"

"Yeah. At least," he said, looking sadly over at where Bridgette had walked off to, "I hope I still am."

For the first time since she arrived at Playa des Losers 2, Gwen was concerned for someone else's troubles. Geoff, one of the sweetest guys she ever met, was truly worried he was losing Bridgette. "I don't think it's you, Geoff," she said softly. "You just need to talk to her about what's bothering her-"

"But she won't tell me," the party guy interrupted. "Can you please talk to her, Gwen? You two are friends, don't girls chat about this, like, how big of a putz their boyfriend is?"

Gwen wasn't sure how to reply to this. Her attention was distracted when Izzy sat down where Bridgette had been. The redhead seemed really distant.

"Something wrong, E-Scope?" Geoff asked.

"It's... nothing," Izzy said, looking away. "Just a stupid phone call, nothing important."

"How's your sexist boyfriend?" Eva asked, looking at Izzy disapprovingly.

While Izzy glared at Eva, Courtney and Duncan stopped their playful fight. "Is he still sick?" Duncan asked. "Gwen, babe, what the hell did you give him? The flu?"

"Don't look at me, you told me he's always hanging around E-Scope," Gwen remarked.

Izzy scoffed. "I'm clean. I was vaccinated so that I never pick up any serious ailments, just carry them. I could be a bioweapon if I wanted to be."

"Yeah right," Courtney replied. "Like any of us believe that, Izzy."

"E-Scope to you! And believe it or not, but it's true."

"This is probably why you like having Ezekiel as your boyfriend," the CIT continued. "He's dumb enough to believe anything you say."

Izzy's eye twitched.

"Not to mention he's dumb enough to follow E-Scope wherever she goes," Duncan added, "or maybe he likes pain as much as she does."

Eva scoffed. "Yeah right. Mr. Sexist enjoying hanging out with girls? He's only with E-Scope because no one else can tolerate the twerp."

"I'm surprised he didn't wait until Beth was voted off," Courtney said. "She lives on a pig farm, so she would know how to treat a sexist pig like him."

"Oink, eh," Duncan remarked, snorting a couple times. Eva and Courtney both laughed, Gwen and Geoff, him a little forced, chuckled.

What happened next happened almost too fast for anyone, even those at that table, to comprehend. Izzy had grabbed said table from underneath and threw it onto it's side; Eva was lucky she had fast reaction skills when she scooted back, because she was almost hit by it. The table slammed on it's side, sending everyone's breakfast on the ground.

If the loud slamming of the table on the ground didn't alert the attention of the others, what Izzy shouted next welded their attention to her.

"Who the _fuck_ are you to judge my boyfriend?!"

Izzy was red in the face, and she wasn't stopping there. "You bunch of jackasses," she shouted, "you all judge him by one thing he did! ONE THING! And you never, ever gave him another chance! You just labeled him and sealed the case shut, and you kept your petty, little hatred to this day, branding him for something that he's not!"

Katie, Sadie, Trent, and Cody sitting at a nearby table looked like they wanted to escape. Tyler, seated alone, was frozen in mid-chew. Noah, also alone, was no longer interested in his book; this was much more interesting.

"You won't even give him a chance to this day," Izzy continued, the shocked expressions of those at her table merely encouraging her. "What, are you going to keep shunning him and acting like he's a leper or something? Are you going to damn him to hell no matter what he does?!"

Courtney was able to recover first, and she crossed her arms defiantly. "Well, he's never so much as apologized-"

"He doesn't need to," Izzy hissted, thrusting her finger at Courtney, "because _you don't deserve it! _None of you deserve a damn thing from him! You kicked him off the contest, you shunned and insulted him, you hurt him in more ways than you can imagine, and you did it all to someone who's never known anything else, never been around people his age, and never deserved it! So you don't deserve a fucking thing from him, you got it?!"

Izzy and Courtney were locked a venomous stare-down. Duncan intervened. "We're allowed our own opinions, _Izzy_," he spat. "If we choose not to like Home School, then we don't have to."

"You're not insulting him around me," Izzy snarled, glaring now at Duncan.

"Ooo, what are you going to do?" the punk asked, waving his hands around in mock horror. "Go top secret spy training on my ass? Renew your license to kill? Or what other bullshit lie can you pull from your ass to threaten me?"

"Look, mister," Izzy stomped in front of Duncan, "you can badmouth me all you want, because I don't care what you say about me. But you leave Ezekiel out of this, because he's never done anything to you. Nothing!"

"He was the one who said guys are stronger and smarter than girls," Courtney shouted. "You're really stupid to date a guy who says those things, _Izzy_."

Izzy whirled back on Courtney. "This coming from the girl, who acts so professional and by the rules and expects everyone to do the same," the redhead jabbed a finger at Duncan, "and yet you're shagging a criminal!"

Courtney's red face was now almost purple with rage. "You... how... you... you rotten..."

"That's private," Duncan shouted, standing up and facing Izzy; he was also red with anger. "If you run your big fat mouth about that-"

"Oh don't worry, I don't spread gossip," Izzy replied, crossing her arms and turning up her lips. "_I_ don't go around slandering or bullying a poor boy because of one mistake he made. I'm not into petty revenge like you and your girlfriend.

"But I am not going to tolerate either of you talking trash about my boyfriend, not for one more second," Izzy's eyes blazed with intensity as she spoke, and her voice lowered dangerously. "If you, Courtney, or anyone else tries to hurt my boyfriend any more than you already have, I'll hurt you back. I'll break every damn bone in your body, including the neck, the spine, and the coccyx.

"That's all I have to say to you pigs. So go fuck yourselves."

Izzy stomped off, kicking one of the spilled breakfasts on the floor as she left the cafeteria. The very awkward silence after her departure there was broken by Gwen.

The goth girl, to everyone's amazement, was chuckling. She smiled and said, "Oh, Izzy. Just when I think you cannot surprise me anymore, you do it again."

* * *

Izzy stormed upstairs. She wanted to be with Ezekiel, away from everyone else. She couldn't stand this loneliness, regardless of how part of her hated relying on someone for entertainment.

When she got up on the floor the ex-contestants were on, she was shocked to see Bridgette knocking at Ezekiel's door. The surfer girl called, "Ezekiel, it's Bridgette! Can I come in?"

"What are you doing?" Izzy asked, very blunt. Her glare startled Bridgette.

"Um, one minute, Zeke," she called to the prairie boy, before walking towards Izzy. The redhead only noticed just now that Bridgette was holding a tray, one that had soup, crackers, a box of kleenex, and a glass.

"Are you bringing my boyfriend breakfast?" Izzy snapped, crossing her arms.

"Um, kind of, yes," Bridgette said, put off by the redhead's anger. "One of the employees here was bringing it to him, room service, so I asked if I could take it to him."

"Why?" Izzy asked, her voice rising. "Why do you want to see my boyfriend?"

Bridgette almost flinched, and swallowed. "Look, E-Scope, I... I don't know what I did to upset you. I'm Ezekiel's friend too."

"Are you?!" Izzy shouted. After a couple seconds, this sank in, and she blinked. "Wait, you _are_?"

"Yes, E-Scope," Bridgette said, as calm as she could. "I realized I was wrong about Ezekiel. He's a much better person than I thought, so I was just trying to do something nice to him."

Izzy groaned in shame, putting her hand on her forehead. "I'm sorry, Bridgie. I just... I'm not really in a good mood."

"Something happen?"

"You'll find out from the others soon enough, though I'm sure they'll have their own side of the story; not much in a mood to talk about it a couple minutes after it happened."

Bridgette nodded, still worried about Izzy's anger. "Um, can I take Zeke's food to him now?"

"Sure sure. Oh, and if you two are going to talk," Izzy managed to smile as she added, "ask him if he feels good enough to go out again tonight. I want to spend some time with him."

"Sure thing, Izzy. Oh, I mean-"

"You know what, you can call me Izzy. Since you're nice to my Zeke; that's all that matters to Izzy."

The surfer girl smiled at her. "Okay then," she said, then she walked into Ezekiel's room.

Ezekiel was obviously not expecting Bridgette at that moment, because he was busy picking his nose. When he noticed the blond surfer in his room, he cried out in startle. "I'm soo'ry, I'm soo'ry," he chanted when he saw her disgusted look. "I just... um, I ran 'oot of tissues, eh."

He pointed to a trash bin full of said item, which also contained a couple empty tissue boxes. The prairie boy wiped his fingers on a tissue that seemed already used. "Soo'ry, Bridgette. I'm really trying to woo'rk on that habit, eh..."

"Oh, I'll live. Here's another box of tissues for you, as well as breakfast."

She set the tray on his lap, and sat down in a chair nearby. "So," she said as Ezekiel eagerly opened the new tissue box, "Izzy wants to know if you feel good enough for a date tonight."

"Oh, possibly tonight. But isn't the new episode of TDA on tonight too?"

"Yeah, but you two would probably sneak onto the set again, huh?" Bridgette asked, raising a slender eyebrow slyly.

"If that'll help cheer her up, eh. What was she mad a'boot 'oot there?"

"Hmm? How'd you know she was mad?"

"I could hear Izzy shout, eh."

Bridgette shrugged, a concerned frown on her face. "I don't know myself, Zeke. She was really mad though, she seemed really protective of you." The surfer girl sighed and rubbed her chin in thought. "My guess would be that the others were probably not speaking nicely about you, and she didn't take kindly to it."

"She shouldn't get upset over that, she knoo's that most of the others doo'nt like me, eh."

"Well Zeke, if someone dissed her in front of you, how'd you react?"

"Not well, I think, if 'dissed' means 'insult'."

"Yes, it does."

Ezekiel sighed, a happy smile on his face. "I really, really like her, Bridgette. I wish she had stayed on our team during TDI, on the first day. Remember that, eh?"

"Oh yeah, she was going to be on our team," Bridgette said. "Well, Zeke, I have a favor to ask you."

"Hmmm? What is it, eh?"

"Well, I need to get away from Duncan for a while, he's really making me mad," Bridgette admitted, brushing one of her blond bangs aside. "It's not fair to Geoff. I know I've been distant, so I need to get out of here."

Ezekiel wondered what this favor was. He hoped it wasn't to take Duncan on his date with him and Izzy.

"Would you mind if we double-date?"

The prairie boy blinked. "Um... what is that, eh?"

Bridgette giggled. His ignorance was cute sometimes. "That's when two couples go out together. Would you mind if Geoff and I go out with you?"

"That sounds okay by me, eh," he said. "You helped me Izzy and I on our date, after all."

"Great! I'll go ask Izzy if it's okay. Thank you, Zeke, and get better!"

Bridgette walked out of his room, a spring in her step now. Ezekiel smiled at seeing her so happy.

* * *

Izzy was on the prowl for a way to entertain herself, and for something that might make her possible third date with Ezekiel more interesting.

"_Maybe I should do something sexy, like fishnet leggings or black underwear,_" she thought. "_But where could I find either of those? I'm not sure where to buy those..._"

Izzy was walking by Gwen's room just as she was musing this. A very sly grin spread across her face, and she rubbed her hands together. "Perfect," she said.

Knocking first and not getting an answer, she headed in. Izzy very briefly wondered why this hotel didn't have an automatic lock on the doors, but wasn't going to look one of the biggest gift horses in the mouth.

The wild redhead headed for Gwen's dresser drawers. Feeling especially naughty, like a college frat boy on a panty raid, she rummaged through Gwen's things. Izzy pulled out one of the goth's black bras.

"Such wicked style," she said to himself. "Me wonders if she wears this because she's a kinky girl... or because she just likes black."

The purple panties with a skull on them were rather interesting, but since everyone had seen those on TV, thanks to Heather, Ezekiel might recognize them (if Izzy did, he probably would). Maybe just some black underwear would do the trick.

Izzy wondered if Gwen's B-cup bra would fit her, since the redhead was C-cup size. While she pondered this, she heard someone walking close to the room. She panicked as she thought it might be Gwen.

Izzy scurried under the bed. She had one of Gwen's black bras clutched tightly as someone did indeed enter the goth girl's room; however, the person wasn't wearing black boots.

Risking a peep, she was only partially startled to see it was Cody. "_Man, Gwen has two people who are panty-raiding her room_," she thought. "_I wonder if she'd feel special over that._"

The idea that Cody was panty-raiding was dashed when she saw that he already had one of Gwen's black bras in his hand. "_I've never heard of someone panty-returning,_" the redhead under the bed thought. "_Cody, you goof, you won't make a good college frat boy at this rate._"

Cody was looking around the room, mostly between the bed and the clothing drawer. The tech-geek looked like he was contemplating something when he and Izzy were startled by a very angry voice.

"_What_ are you doing in here?!"

Izzy flinched, hitting her noggin on the bottom of the bed. The sound was covered by Cody's started yelp as he spun around to face Gwen. Her pale face had the most furious look, and it intensified when she saw what Cody had in his hand.

"Cody! You're stealing my underwear?!" she shouted, storming over to him.

"No no no," he chanted, waving his hands in protest. "This bra, this one, this is the one you gave me during Total Drama Island!"

Gwen looked at him doubtfully, then swiped the bra from his hands. Looking at the tag, she let out a sigh. "Okay, yeah, I marked the tag of this one, because I thought if I'd ever have to get it back, I'd have to wash it twice."

Cody chuckled, very nervous. "Well, I felt like a pervert for keeping it when it was just for a simple bet with Owen. I wanted to give it back sooner, but I was mauled by that bear soon after you left it for me. And you were in TDI until the end, and we were dragged into TDA soon after-"

"I get the point," Gwen said as she put the bra back in her underwear drawer. "You gave it back, thank you. You can go now."

Cody nodded, and took a step towards the door before turning right back to her. "Gwen, are you doing all right?"

She scoffed. "What do you care?"

"You know I do."

Gwen looked over at him for a few seconds; she seemed to study his eyes. "Cody," she said, softer than normal for the goth girl, "I need to ask you something, and please be honest: did you just want to get into my skirt during TDI?"

"What? No, of course not," he exclaimed, waving at his hands. "I wasn't aiming for anything except to ask you out!"

"Oh yeah? What about your little bet with Owen?"

"That was his idea. When I told him I was going to try and ask you out, he got really excited and starting asking me questions, like 'Are you going to kiss her?' and 'Will you see her bra?' He seemed to get really excited when underwear got in the conversation."

"Ah, Owen," Gwen said, smirking a little, "ever the subtle one."

"Yeah, he actually dared me to get your bra, kept saying he never saw one before. I told him it was ridiculous, especially since we were on TV."

"Yet you still asked for it."

"Well, I figured I had nothing to lose, since I was going to set you up with Trent, and I hate doing dishes."

Gwen merely shrugged and sat on the bed. Izzy had to hold back a grunt when the bed pushed her into the floor. "So Cody, I assume you're going to try and ask me out," the goth girl said, "but I'd like to let you know right here and now: I'm still not interested. Not in dating, anyway."

"I... figured you wouldn't be," he replied, poking his fingers together. "I actually, I just wanted to be your friend for now."

"Pardon?"

"After all that has happened, I just wanted to help you out."

"Cody, I broke up with Trent. No one died."

The tech-geek rocked on his feet nervously. "Well yeah, but you've been really down ever since you got here."

"Don't I have a right to be?" she snapped.

"Of course you do, but-"

"Look Cody," he voice agitated, "please don't take this personally, but I really don't want you hanging over me. I'm fine, I'm..."

She trailed off, starting to breathe in and out deeply. The goth girl, after a few seconds of breathing, said something so quietly that neither Cody or Izzy could hear it.

"I'm sorry, what?" he asked.

"I said, 'actually, no'," she admitted. "I... could use someone to talk to. Bridgette's been bitter these days, Leshawna's not here, and I don't really trust anyone here, except... maybe..."

She looked up at him hopefully. "Could you hear me out? I need to vent really bad."

"Of course," he said as he plopped down in a chair near the bed.

"I know everyone thinks I'm just being the typical goth girl," she said, "but I really had had enough. It was bad enough that Trent and I had broken up, but for Chris to keep rubbing it in on national television... I didn't want any more of it."

She was quiet, staring at the ground. Izzy waited for more, but Cody was the one to speak. "It actually kind of surprised me that you wanted to quit, Gwen."

"What? How so?"

"Well, you never gave up once during TDI," he said, smiling at her. "You stayed four days for the Awake-athon. You kept climbing the mountain after Heather ripped your skirt off. You never gave up no matter how sick of the people or the contest you got.

"So when you quit TDA," Cody scratched the back of his head, "it really shocked me. Then I realized it must be because the emotional trauma must've been too much."

"Yep," she said, sighing. "Chris really made me feel bad. It was... it was like...

"My father all over again."

Gwen stared at Cody, looking vulnerable. "Are your parents married, Cody?"

"Nope, divorced."

"Oh. Well, I'm worse than that, my dad never married my mother. Yep, I'm a bastard child, the creepy goth girl is the result of two people who didn't love each other."

"You're not creepy," Cody said, his voice very light.

She scoffed, but not at him. "I was six when it happened. My dad was this arrogant man, and I kept trying to love him; it's amazing he reminds me of Chris Maclean. Anyway, I digress.

"I thought for sure if daddy married mommy, things would be better," Gwen admitted. "And then I asked him. 'Why don't you marry mommy, daddy'?" She slumped, covering her face with one hand. "I still don't know if it was really bad timing, or if it was my words. All I know is that the next day, he wasn't home. And I've never seen him again."

Cody and Gwen (and Izzy) were silent for a couple minutes before she continued. "So from that day on, I became what you see here: the miserable, creepy goth girl. I keep thinking to myself, 'what good is love?' There was no love involved in my creation.

"I love my mother, but I still think she never should have seen a man like my father. I'm worried about her still, I'm worried about my brother. I want to be home for him so bad, I keep thinking that he might be like Duncan and start a life of crime."

Gwen leaned back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. "You know, Cody, I've never told anyone this, but I'm worried about myself too. Having no father in my life except for the jackass who ditched us... I'm so morbid and ready to feel disappointment over anything. I don't have any faith, any light in my life.

"I mean, you want to know what color my hair was before I dyed it black and never went back?"

Cody shrugged and guessed, "Blond?"

"Oh, good guess."

"I figured it would be that. I couldn't see you as a redhead." She managed to chuckle. "Yet you can see me as a blond?"

He scratched his chin, then shook his head. She smiled at him before she concluded, "So, now you know what type of girl I am. Am I still that awesome, knowing that I cannot have faith in anything?"

"I still think you're awesome, Gwen," Cody said. "Despite all you've gone through, you still have a lot going for you. You have more friends than you'd think, people really like you when they get to know you."

Gwen flipped away a dyed bang from her forehead and sighed. "I don't know, Cody..."

"I can list a few. Leshawna, DJ, Geoff, Bridgette, Owen, Beth, and myself. We all like you, we don't think of you as 'the creepy girl'. We think of you as Gwen, one of the toughest, sarcastic, and smartest people we know."

"Cody," she said, her voice soft, "I still don't know about that. Why do people like me? Why do you like me?"

"Well, guys do have a thing for goth girls," he said, winking at her. He was surprised when she scowled at him.

"That's not funny, Cody."

"What? It's true. Goth gals are artistic, they're passionate, they have personality, and I think it's because of the contrast of colors that really turns on guys," he said. "Black clothes on white skin, the dark hair, and green lips. I don't know why, but it's kind of like how Storm in X-Men is really hot, pure black skin with pure white hair."

Gwen couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, you geek, you."

"Thank you."

"Well Cody, I don't think being a goth should be a turn-on. A lot of guys at school used to joke about how gothic girls were easy because they have low self-esteem, so we'd supposedly spread our legs for anything; their words."

Cody blinked, then said, "Wow. What douche bags."

Izzy had to slap her hands over her mouth to prevent from laughing. She would have been okay, because Gwen was laughing out loud. Cody grinned sheepishly.

"Man, hearing you say that is quite surprising," Gwen said. "I really wish you had been on TDA, Cody, you could have kept me going just by saying funny things like that."

He grinned some more. "I really do like seeing you smile, Gwen. You have a really beautiful smile."

Gwen felt her face get warm, and she tried to cover the blush with her hand. "I still don't understand why you liked me out of all the girls on TDI, Cody. Am I really your type?"

"I told you, I like smart girls. Smart, creative, tough girls, who are really hot too."

"Heh, 'hot'," she repeated. "That doesn't define me. That defines... Lindsay. Or Heather."

"No way, Gwen, there is no way one could consider Heather 'hot' and not you. I know it's cliché to say this, but the more you like someone, the more attractive they are. That's what makes you so great, being you makes you hot."

She smirked. "Well, Cody, then I have to say this: you didn't look like much at first, but there's a whole lot of attractiveness in you."

Cody blushed; he was obviously not used to compliments from girls. "Thanks, Gwen."

"I'm sure you can find yourself a really sweet girlfriend one day," she said. "Lord knows you try hard enough."

"What can I say, I really like the ladies," he admitted. "Comes from having three sisters and a great mom."

"I thought your parents were divorced, do you live with them?"

"No, sadly. The court went with the old-fashioned manner of child custody. Gave the boy to the father, the girls to the mother. My dad's not a bad person... but he's... he's..."

He stammered and scratched the back of his head. "Well, he's got a crappy job and does nothing to improve himself. He just sits at home, drinking beer and watching TV. Being home with him is like living in a state of depression.

"When I get to be with my sisters, my life is so much better. They're three angels, different but still precious. I love doing things for them, and they taught me a lot. This'll make me sound like a total fem, but I know how to knit pretty well."

Gwen burst out laughter, and Izzy had to chew on something to prevent herself from laughing out loud too; Gwen's bra actually did provide a good muffler, but even to Izzy, it felt weird to be putting it in her mouth.

"So that's why I like girls so much, I guess," Cody said. "I love being around them. They're cute, charming, and smart, and I enjoy seeing them smile. I've always wanted to have a girlfriend, because I'd like to make her smile and laugh.

"That's why when I couldn't ask you out, I wanted to help hook you up with Trent, so you could be happy."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. But wait, do I remind you of your sisters?"

"Nah, you're not like them. My younger sister is like Beth, and my older sisters are like Lindsay and Courtney. Not that much like, but somewhat similar."

She nodded, smiling at him. He smiled back, then he hummed in thought. "Say Gwen, since the hotel and plaza are real downers, and seeing that Izzy and Courtney might be at each other's throats all day, we should go someplace to hang out."

Gwen shrugged. "Have any place in mind, Code-Miester?"

"Well, there is a carnival nearby. Tyler could drive us there; nothing cheers one up more than roller coasters, cotton candy, and a ferris wheel?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Me? At a carnival? You're kidding, right?"

"The lines will be short, since everyone will be home watching TDA," Cody said.

"The lines are not my concern, just that I don't think a happy-go-lucky event like a carnival and I will agree."

"Nuh-uh, my dear Gwen," Cody said, standing up and smiling at her with that gap-tooth grin. "You are going to enjoy this, so says the Code-Miester! You are, at the least, going to get some cotton candy out of this."

"I've... never had cotton candy."

"All the more reason," Cody exclaimed. "C'mon, we can take Bridgette and Geoff, we'll go as a group of friends!"

Gwen smirked. "Those two will make out the entire time."

"We'll leave them on the ferris wheel; it'll be nice for them, since Bridgette's not happy here."

"Ah, the Code-Miester can sense the girl's vibes, huh?"

"Well, kind of," he said. "I can tell she hates being around Duncan. I think it'd be nice for her to hang out with you, because she needs some girl talk time, and Courtney isn't going to cut it if her deal is with Duncan."

She smiled. "All right, Code-Miester, you convinced me. Let's go ask them."

After the two left the room, Izzy crawled out from underneath the bed and chuckled. "Izzy thinks this might be more fun than she originally thought..."

* * *

"I cannot believe we're doing this."

"At this rate, I think I'm going to ask Dad to send me a mini-van!"

There were seven people in the five seater car. Tyler was driving, Ezekiel was in the passenger seat, and Izzy was sitting on the floor in front of her boyfriend.

In the back seat were Geoff, Cody, and Bridgette and Gwen, double-buckled. Bridgette was practically in the goth girl's lap, and she had an impish smile.

"Izzy likes this, Ezekiel's lap is her air bag," Izzy said, her head resting on his legs. He was blushing the entire time, and was gently playing with her red hair. She giggled and nuzzled his knee with her cheek.

After Izzy, Cody, and Bridgette all came together to discover all of them were going out, they decided that the six of them would go to the carnival together. With the limited space in the car, Izzy volunteered to go strapped to the roof, or in the trunk, or even under the hood. While most of the others were fervently against those suggestions, Tyler was okay.

"As long as she doesn't drive," he had said.

The car ride consisted of them keeping a close eye out for any police cars and small chitchat. About halfway there, Ezekiel asked Tyler, "Why don't you come with us, eh? We wouldn't mind."

"Nah man, I gotta go back and watch the next episode of TDA," Tyler replied. "It's like with my favorite teams, I _have_ to watch and be there for them, or I feel like they will lose."

"Sports fans," Gwen scoffed. "I'll never understand that psychology."

"At times, I don't either," he admitted, "but hey, I want to see Lindsay."

Gwen shrugged. "That's cool, I guess. I hope Leshawna and DJ make it through the day, but I'm just not interested in the show, and watch Chris Maclean be an asshole, parading around with that bimbo."

Bridgette flinched, and began to stammer as she shook her head at Gwen. "What?" the goth girl asked. "She's just some woman with fake tits that Chris is probably banging on the side."

Ezekiel, Izzy, and Bridgette were wide-eyed in horror as Geoff and Cody chuckled at Gwen's insult. Tyler lost focus on his driving, and almost ran a red light; he stomped on the brakes, pitching everyone forward. Izzy hit her head on the glove compartment.

"What was up with that, man?" Geoff asked as he adjusted his hat.

"Izzy bumped her noggin," Izzy moaned. Ezekiel rubbed the sore spot tenderly, and she grinned appreciatively.

"Gwen," Tyler said, his voice shaking slightly, "that woman is my mom."

"WHAT?!" Gwen, Geoff, and Cody cried out in horror.

"You might as well, I'd rather you know rather than continue to trash-talk without knowing," Tyler said, taking a deep breath. "But you know, I don't know why it bothers me that much. She hasn't been my mother for years."

"Oh God damn it," Gwen cursed, rubbing her forehead in shame. "Tyler, I... I'm so sorry, I didn't know."

He scoffed. "Yeah well, I'll bet she's been around so much, I hope Chris catches something from her," he replied. "For the first time during this season, I'm glad I didn't make the cut."

"Sha'really," Geoff remarked. "Sure you don't want to go with us to the carnival?"

"No thanks, man," Tyler said with a shrug. "I'd rather watch the show. Even if my mom is on the show, I want to see Lindsay more."

"If anyone gives you trouble about your mom, Tyler," Gwen said, "I'll kick their ass."

"I'll hold them," Izzy volunteered.

"Thanks, guys. But since you all and Courtney are the only ones who know, I don't have any trouble with it."

"Courtney knows too?" Gwen asked.

"It's cool, she wouldn't tell anyone," Tyler said. "It's not becoming of a CIT to slander people."

"And she's not Heather," Bridgette quickly added. "She wouldn't hurt someone like that. Being sneaky and mean is not like her."

Cody, who had been staring out of the window in thought after Tyler dropped the bomb about his mom, hummed in thought. Geoff looked over him and asked, "Something up, Code-Miester?"

"No, not really," he said. "Just that, there's a taxi following us."

"Yeah, I noticed that too," Tyler said as the others looked back. "Probably someone else going to the fair."

"Or communist spies," Izzy suggested. "Or maybe a hitman! I think I may have one after me."

"I shudder to think of why," Gwen said, "but don't get that excited, Izzy. Tyler's probably right, just someone else going to the fair; nothing to do with you."

The taxi behind them contained two passengers, one of them dead-set focused on Izzy; the other was rather annoyed to be there. "I still cannot believe," Duncan grumbled, "that you're dragging me to a carnival."

"I am _not_ letting Izzy sneak on the show," Courtney snapped. "I am going to make sure she and Ezekiel stay at the carnival, or that they go home right after they're done there!"

"Is this all because of her yelling at us?" he asked. "Look, she's all hot air."

"No one talks to me like that," she growled. "Or you. I've had enough of that insane girl, and Ezekiel is obviously just as crazy for dating her!"

Duncan shrugged. "Whatev's. I just hate the thought of being seen at a carnival, and even worse, I cannot ride the rides when I'm stalking someone."

"Not stalking, observing. We're monitoring them, making sure they don't break the rules any more! Also, I want to see what's really bothering Bridgette."

"She doesn't like me, simple as that."

"I just want to make sure," Courtney said.

She crossed her arms, and added, "And Izzy's going down for what she said to us."

* * *

While at the fair, Cody was asking everyone who worked there where he could find cotton candy. It was sadly apparent that the fair had not hired the most bright of people, because not only were they all clueless about where anything would be, but also they were confused about where in the carnival _they_ were.

"Has the constant carnival music melted your mind?!" Izzy hollered at one of them. Ezekiel pulled her away as she continued with, "Or are you normally so stupid, you have to ask people where you are so you don't get lost?"

"Izzy," Bridgette tried to reason with her.

"I'll explain breathing to you too," Izzy continued, glaring at the stupid carnival employee. "I'm sure you need to be reminded every now and then so you don't accidentally die!"

After they were far enough away from the stupid worker, Izzy calmed down. "I'll have to remember that carnival music really numbs the mind," she said. "For offensive and defensive purposes, of course. But we shouldn't stay here long, lest we fall prey to it too."

"Cha," Geoff agreed. "Anywhere you guys want to stop?"

"Izzy thinks the ferris wheel would be a good place to stop," she said as she wrapped her arms around Ezekiel's waist. "Methinks my Zeke will try to get to second base up there with me!"

Ezekiel turned scarlet, especially when Geoff started laughing. He couldn't help but feel Bridgette and Gwen staring at him, but for some reason, he thought he felt someone else staring at him too...

Cody suddenly let out a wild cry. "There it is! There's the cotton candy!"

"Oh boy," Izzy declared. "Izzy's getting one as big as her head!"

Cody and Izzy rushed off, leaving the other four in waiting. Bridgette smirked at Ezekiel, who was slowly recovering from the embarrassment.

"So how are things going between you and Izzy?" she asked.

"Oh, pretty good, eh," he said. The prairie raised boy took out a handkerchief and blew his nose. "I really love being with her, she... she makes me really happy."

Bridgette giggled while Geoff wiggled his eyebrows. "So you are planning on getting to second base with her on the ferris wheel then, prairie boy?" he asked.

He was elbowed from both sides, by Bridgette and Gwen. As Geoff rubbed his sore spots, Ezekiel shook his head. "No way, eh. I'm still kind of sick, and we're in public. Plus, I doo'nt think we're ready fur that kind of level yet; she was just kidding around, eh."

Bridgette hummed in thought. "Maybe, Zeke. It's cool that you don't want to rush things with her."

"Even though," Gwen remarked, "she is possibly wanted by law, so you might not get another chance at the ferris wheel."

"A'geen with the ferris wheel," Ezekiel groaned. "Am I missing something here, eh? Is the ferris wheel supposed to be for that?"

"No, it's just what a lot of young people like us do," Geoff explained. "Especially if the windows are tinted so you cannot see in."

"How devious."

"Cha, I know. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Now Geoff, don't get any ideas," Bridgette chastised him.

"S'okay, babe. I just want to get to the top and give a shout out to the world," Geoff said, pumping his fists. "Wouldn't that be awesome? For the entire carnival to hear my cry out to my dudes and dudettes back home?"

"With your voice, your dudes back home could hear you," Gwen said, smirking. She looked over her shoulder suddenly, then looked back and shrugged.

"Something wrong, Gwen?" Bridgette asked.

"Does anyone else feel like we're being watched?" she asked. "I know that sounds paranoid-"

"No, I feel like that too, eh," Ezekiel admitted. "Do you think it's some kind of TDA fan? Or maybe Chris has an intern filming us?"

"They'd better not try anything," Gwen remarked, scowling. "I'm here to enjoy myself, not to have a damn camera in my face."

"About that," Bridgette said, grinning at her friend, "so Cody asked you out, and you accepted?"

"He didn't ask me on a date, just as a friend," Gwen replied quickly, and turned to hide the faint blush on her pale face. "Cody is just my friend! Although..."

"Although what?" Bridgette was in her face immediately, grinning eagerly. She had her hands clasped, almost shaking in anticipation.

"Bridgette, cut it out," her friend replied, trying to force Bridgette away. Soon she and the surfer girl were wrestling playfully, giggling and chanting, "Tell me," "No," "Tell me," "No!"

Geoff chuckled as he watched them. "Oh, it's great to see those two happy, isn't it?"

"Yeah, they've both bin kind of doo'n, eh," Ezekiel remarked. "You know what Bridgette's been doo'n a'boot, right Geoff?"

"I figured it has something to do with Duncan," Geoff said, sighing. "I don't know, dude, I think it could be me."

"Tell you what, let's get on that ferris wheel, get some alone time with her, eh," Ezekiel suggested, smiling slyly at Geoff. "Just talk to her, dude, and tell her you won't leave the ride until she spills the tomatoes."

"You mean 'spills the beans', dude, but I like your style," the party animal declared, slapping Ezekiel on the back. "Most awesome idea. You really have been spending a lot of time with Izzy."

"Of course, eh."

"You should have seen her at breakfast, man, she really lost it when Courtney and Duncan were talking bad about you."

"She lost it?" Ezekiel asked, looking concerned.

"Um, yeah, didn't she tell you?"

"No, she just seemed really determined to go 'oot with me tonight. Why, what happened?"

Before Geoff could answer, Izzy and Cody came back with the cotton candy. They had three of them, two blue and one pink. Izzy was burying her face in the pink one, getting it all over her face and hair. Cody handed one of the cotton candies to Gwen, and the other one to Geoff.

"Share with Bridgette," he instructed the party animal.

"Awesome," Geoff said, and turned to Bridgette. "Hey Bridge, this cotton candy's like you, blue and big!"

" 'Big'?" Bridgette repeated, frowning at her boyfriend.

The other four stared at Geoff, who had the look of a deer in the headlights, a cow looking at the oncoming train, a man facing his own demise.

"I meant, sweet?" he cried out. As Bridgette continued to glare at him, something caught Geoff's eye. He looked over his girlfriend and squinted in confusion.

"Was that Duncan?" he asked aloud.

Bridgette looked around immediately, her eyes wide. "What?!" she cried out. "You saw Duncan? Here?!" She looked around frantically, her eyes wide and scanning.

"Calm down babe," Geoff said, putting his hands on her shoulders. "It was probably just another guy with a mohawk."

"How many guys at a carnival have green mohawks?!" Bridgette cried out. "He followed us here! He was probably in that taxi! He's trying to ruin this date, and-"

"Whoa whoa whoa, chill, Bridgette," Gwen declared, hurrying over to her friend. "Duncan wouldn't follow us here. He wouldn't be caught dead at a carnival."

Bridgette breathed deeply, brushing her blond bangs away from her forehead. "Okay... okay. I lost it for a moment there."

"Maybe it's a spy dressed as Duncan who's after me," Izzy remarked casually between mouthfuls of cotton candy. "They are crafty bastards, aren't they?"

Geoff rubbed Bridgette's shoulders a little before letting go. "You got a real issue with Duncan, don't cha, babe?"

"Yes," Bridgette said with a sigh. "I think it's time we talked, sweetheart."

"Why not the ferris wheel, eh?" Ezekiel suggested. "Gives you a chance to be alone together, eh."

The other five gave him dubious glances. "Fur conversation, eh," he quickly added. "I mean, none of us were planning on the other four coming, so if you want to be alone for a little bit-"

"I second that," Gwen interrupted him. "C'mon, let's head over and... gah," she cried out as the wind blew her cotton candy, brushing her face. "This stuff is so sticky, it's getting all over me! How do you eat this?!"

"As best you can," Cody said, chuckling. "You can pull off strips if that's easier, Gwen."

"That's for wimps, pansies, and French people," Izzy remarked, her face having a thin covering of cotton candy on it. "Real women dive right in."

"Izzy, dudette," Geoff said, chuckling at the sight of her face, "if you kiss Ezekiel on the ferris wheel, his face is gonna get glued to yours."

"Really? Cool!"

* * *

**(On the Tube.)**

"Welcome back to Total Drama Action," Chris Maclean announced. He was sitting on a beach chair in the middle of the trailer grounds, Tyler's mom sitting on his lap and almost pushing her large breasts against the side of his head.

"Last time, we saw a night of the living dead, as our actors and actresses took on zombies! The make-up was awesome, by the way, and I'd like to give a shout out to all the zombie buffs that participated. Thank you guys, you made this one awesome challenge!

"While some like DJ and Heather panicked, Harold and Beth kept their cool, and won the Killer Grips' second victory! On the losing side, Gwen had the others vote her off, which was most uncool since there was no suspense!

"So what mysterious new challenge will await the new campers? Will we be in for a twist ending? So get your sixth sense ready, keep watching the skies, and get ready for some super, unnatural experiences! And don't be worried about Ezekiel and Izzy, because we have guards set up outside the set today, so they aren't sneaking in!

"So now we'll watch Leshawna and Justin lead their teams in the next episode of Total... Drama... ACTION!"

* * *

"That's... awfully tall," Ezekiel whimpered as he looked up at the ferris wheel.

"Wow! I'll bet it's about ten stories tall," Geoff cheered. "And the windows! They're tinted, no one can see in!"

Ezekiel swallowed nervously as he looked at the carriages, the green and red lights flashing on them. He saw that a lot of them were rocking, and one of them looked more rickety than any of the others.

"The ride is about fifteen minutes long," Gwen said, reading the board nearby the line. "It doesn't go that fast, though I don't think they should leave the controls unmanned."

"Now who would fiddle with the ferris wheel?" Cody asked.

"I would," said Izzy, her pink syrup-covered face gleaming under the lights. "I'd make it go faster!"

"I'm okay with it being sloo', eh," Ezekiel muttered.

"Oh, have some excitement, my Zeke," she exclaimed. "On a really fast ferris wheel, it'd be like the mile-high club!"

"What's that, eh?"

"We'll tell you later," Bridgette said quickly, cutting off Izzy before the redhead would explain. "Looks like it is our turn."

The next group of people were allowed on. Gwen, Cody, Bridgette, and Geoff were able to get on, but Izzy and Ezekiel had to wait. The redhead pouted as she cuddled Ezekiel.

"Well, Zeke," she said after the ferris wheel started up again, "what say you? Wanna do second base in the ferris wheel?"

He blushed, and she giggled. Tickling his side, she purred to him, "We don't have to if you don't feel ready, or comfortable doing it in a ferris wheel."

"It's mostly because," he sneezed before continuing, "I still feel yicky, and this ferris wheel looks scary."

"Awww, okay. I wanna snuggle you, still."

"I'm okay with that, eh. But Izzy, I have to ask you something."

"Yes, my Zeke?"

"What did you say at breakfast this morning?"

Izzy's sticky face fell a little, then perked up. "I told off Courtney and Duncan. Quite strongly."

"Why?"

"Because they were insulting you, and frankly, I'm sick to death of people giving you a hard time," she said firmly. "You owe nobody at the Plaza des Losers, Zeke. They put you through rough times over so little, and if anyone owes an apology, it's them for the way they treated you."

Ezekiel stared at her for a couple seconds, then pulled her close. "Thank you, Izzy," he said as he kissed her forehead, tasting some of the cotton candy syrup. "I doo'nt knoo' what I did to deserve you, eh."

She beamed at him. "You're my Zeke, my sweetie. You so deserve me."

As they talked, Cody and Gwen were slowly rising up. The tech-geek looked out the window and marveled at the climbing scene. "Wow," he shouted, his face glowing, "you can see the whole carnival already, and we're only halfway up!"

"Fascinating," Gwen muttered. The goth girl was shivering in her seat. "Cody, I should have told you... I don't do well with heights!"

She wrung her hands in fright, her breathing getting shallow. Before she felt real terror, her hands were being held by Cody. She looked at him in astonishment, and he smiled as he put his hand in one of hers.

"Don't worry, it's just as friends," he said, smiling at her. "My big sister always had me to do this when we rode tall rides."

She smile back at him, squeezing his hand. "You ever wonder why people are terrified over rides like these, but they still go on them?"

"I have no clue, maybe it's just to face their fears," Cody said. "Anyway, this is much nicer than trying to defuse a time bomb."

"Or being buried alive," she added. Glancing out the window, she saw how high up they were, and it was _really_ high. She let out a choking noise, and grabbed his hand with both of hers. He was starting to lose feeling in his fingers.

"Ow, Gwen...," he whimpered. She noticed this, and loosened her grip.

"Sorry, Cody."

"It's okay. I really don't mind at all," Cody said, managing a smile. "You have a powerful grip."

She chuckled, and stared into his green eyes. Gwen had never really looked, but she was amazed at how honest he looked. The goth girl smiled, feeling her fear transform into something warm and comforting.

"Cody?"

"Yeah, Gwen? You doing okay?"

"Yes, I'm just fine. You know, I know I once thought that you were just trying to get into my skirt, but now I know you're a much better guy than that."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "I'm quite comfortable with you."

Cody was blushing hard, and he had a very happy smile on his face. He braved to wrap his arm around her shoulder, and said back to her, "And I enjoy being with you."

"Thanks," she said. "And you know something?"

"What, Gwen?"

"You would have looked terrible in my skirt."

* * *

**(Warning, content is maturing.)**

Izzy and Ezekiel boarded one of the carriages, and to Ezekiel's horror, it was the very rickety one. The prairie boy whimpered and grabbed hold of Izzy, who was squealing in joy and pumping her fists in the air.

They were right across from Bridgette and Geoff's carriage, and the two were in the middle of Bridgette's confession.

"I just," she said, her voice trembling as she admitted her feelings to Geoff, "I really don't like being around Duncan. It's like he knows how to really irk me, and he enjoys it."

Geoff sighed, and propped his chin on his fist. "That guy does like to bug people, but I didn't know he was making you that upset."

"He is. I cannot stand it, Geoff. His influence on Courtney, DJ, even you, I feel it all the time. He continues to rub in what really makes me mad, and I'm not the type of person who gets mad easily! You know that!"

Geoff nodded. "Yeah, babe, I know. Look... I'll talk to him."

She looked over at him, hopeful. "Really? You will?"

"I promise. Tomorrow, I'll talk with him about it. I'll just tell him, at the least, to lay off you; I don't like my girl being so upset."

"Oh thank you," she cried out, throwing her arms around him. "I cannot tell you how much that means to me!"

Bridgette cupped Geoff's face and kissed him passionately. It surprised him, especially when she slipped her tongue in slightly. He moaned as she licked at his teeth and tongue, then trailed her mouth down his neck.

"Oh babe," he moaned, stroking her hair. "I think I can get a picture of how much it means to you..."

She giggled as she kissed her neck more, then sucked on it. He cried out, making her giggled more.

"Bridgette, babe, I think you just left a hickey!"

"Excellent."

She continued to kiss down his chest, licking one of his nipples. As he moaned in pleasure, she peeled off her hoodie. With only a thin white shirt on, she lifted it over her breasts to expose her bra.

"Wanna do the same to me, handsome?" she cooed.

Geoff, who's mind was swimming as it was, didn't react at first. Bridgette giggled and snatched his cowboy hat, placing it on her head and sticking her tongue out playfully. "C'mon, handsome. Our ride is almost over."

This snapped Geoff into action. Nuzzling his nose into her cleavage, he reached around to unhook her bra. After a few seconds of fiddling, he still couldn't get it off.

"Is this some kind of brain teaser puzzle?" he cried out in frustration.

"You goof," she laughed, and simply pulled her bra up over her breasts.

This wasn't the first time Geoff had seen her breasts, but he was just as excited as the first time. He licked at her, flicking the bud of her pink nipple. Bridgette's face flushed as Geoff started to really go at it, and she held his head to her breast.

"Yeah, that's it," she cooed, squinting in pleasure. She stared out the window as Geoff licked her nipple. "Thank you so much, Geoff..."

"No, thank you, my uber-babe," he replied, muffled.

She giggled more, combing his blond hair. Sighing happily, she continued to moan as she stared out the window. While Geoff's mouth and tongue were sending pleasurable shivers up her spine, she tried not to cry out, thinking someone out there would hear her.

Then her eye caught something. Something green and black, something with a skull on his chest, some_one_ she didn't want to see.

"WHAT THE," she exclaimed, startling Geoff.

"Oh sorry, babe," he shouted, holding his hands up. "Did I hurt you? Was I too rough-"

"Duncan's out there," she cried out, pointing out the window.

* * *

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?!" Bridgette shouted at Duncan, running over to him. Courtney, nearby, was so startled, she didn't notice how much the surfer's clothing was ruffled.

"Oh good, you're off the ride," Duncan said, grinning as he headed towards the ferris wheel controls. "Excellent."

"Don't you ignore me," she yelled. "You followed us, didn't you? You awful, mean-spirited-"

"Bridgette, no wait," Courtney shouted, standing between her and Duncan. "I was the one who wanted to follow you all, not him."

"What?" Bridgette asked, flabbergasted. Geoff, right behind Bridgette, was covering part of his neck as he looked between his girlfriend, his punk friend, and his punk friend's girlfriend.

"I wanted to watch Izzy and Ezekiel," Courtney explained. "I wanted to make sure they didn't sneak onto the show again."

"Why does that matter to you?" Bridgette asked, her voice sounding hurt and frustrated. "Can't you just let my friends and I go on date without being spied on?"

"You didn't hear how Izzy talked to me this morning," Courtney said. "It was completely unforgivable."

Gwen and Cody were approaching them, looking quite surprised to see Courtney and Duncan. The shouting between Bridgette and Courtney was really off-putting, but the brunet tech-geek looked rather distracted by something else.

"Um Duncan?" he called out. "What are you doing?"

Duncan was fiddling with the controls of the ferris wheel. After a few seconds of tinkering, the ferris wheel's speed picked up.

"What are you doing?" Bridgette shouted at the punk.

"Are you fooling around with the controls?" Courtney asked him.

"I'm getting your revenge, Princess," he said, grinning impishly. "I'm making Home School and Crazy Girl's ride a little faster!"

He cranked up one of the controls, and the ferris wheel was now spinning wildly, many times faster than normal. The green and red lights on the carriages were flashing like strobe lights.

"You're gonna kill them," Gwen shrieked.

Inside the cabin, Ezekiel was sure he was going to die. His arms were wrapped around the waist of his cheering girlfriend, who had her arms up in the air.

"Wheeeeeeeeee-eeeeeeeeeeeee-eeeeeeeeeee-eeeeeeeeee," she squealed as the ferris wheel went round and round.

"Duncan, stop it," Courtney shouted. "Do you know how much trouble we could get in for this?!"

"Forget that, you could hurt Zeke and Izzy," Bridgette shouted, pushing her way to the controls. "Stop it right now!"

Duncan cleared his throat. "I wouldn't do that, Malibu Barb-"

"Shut the hell up," Bridgette shouted as she pounded the Emergency Stop button.

The ferris wheel came to a sudden halt. The carriages all rocked violently but slowed down, all except for one. The rickety one, the one Ezekiel and Izzy were in, was thrown clean off the ride, soaring through the air and over the horizon.

Everyone at the carnival watched the carriage soar off. Bridgette whimpered in horror. "Oops," she said, very lightly.

"Way to go, Bridgette," Duncan said. "I think you threw them into the USA with that one."

He fell down laughing.

* * *

**(On the TDA set.)**

"Okay, actors," Chris Maclean said to the eight contestants, "we are having a great time watching you all compete in teams, but after this challenge, the teams will be divided!"

He pulled his busty companion closer to him. "Andrea and I have been talk about what would be great to see as your last team effort!"

"We did?" Andrea asked, looking confused.

"Honey, later," Chris remarked. "Your next movie is... the supernatural! Just like M. Night Shyamalan would make!"

Harold looked extremely happy again. "I've seen all of his movies! They rock!"

"Well, let's see if you can live up to his characters' expectations," Chris Maclean said. "Because today, you're going to solve a supernatural mystery!"

"I don't get it," Lindsay said. "What is a 'super-maternal' movie?"

"Supernatural," Beth corrected her. "It's like when something unexplained is out there."

"Like ghosts or the living dead," Owen pointed out.

"Or mermaids or people behaving strangely," Leshawna said.

"Or flying saucers, like aliens," DJ said.

Lindsay laughed. "Oh, TJ, you're so funny. There are no such things as flying saucers and aliens!"

A squealing sound alerted the attention of all those on the set of TDA. They looked up to see a round object with red and green flashing lights on it soaring through the air. It crash-landed in the film lot, far from where the trailers were.

Everyone stared for a few seconds, then Harold burst into wild cheers. "Awesome effects, Chris!"

The host blinked, then grinned. "Yes, supernatural effects! Now let me explained the challenge..."

* * *

**End of Part 8.**

* * *

If you don't know who M. Night Shyamalan is, he made The Sixth Sense, The Happening, Signs, The Village, and others.

So, Izzy and Ezekiel have crash-landed on the set, trespassing for a third time! How will they get involved in the supernatural challenge, and who's going to win? You'll find out next chapter!


	9. Lady and Prairie Boy in the Water

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - This chapter contains a scene of a couple getting to second base in high detail, but the scene is, for the most part, related to the plot and reveals more about the two involved. So if you want to skip the sexual part, do so, but the beginning and end of the scene are plot-related.

Oh, and new poll.

* * *

**Chapter 9** - Embarrassment

* * *

The crash had knocked out both Izzy and Ezekiel; to be fair, Ezekiel fainted before they hit, but Izzy didn't notice, so no one could ever hold that against him.

She was the first to wake up. The redhead blinked, and then slowly began to move around. Her body was throbbing all over, especially her head and, oddly enough, her right big toe. When she moved around and didn't feel any shooting pains, she realized this giant fall had gone a lot more smoothly than most of her plummeting experiences.

"Woo, I loved that ferris wheel," she said to herself. "Wonder if I could get another ride?"

As she stood up, something fell out of her lap. It was her boyfriend, who collapsed on the floor in a heap. Crying out in startle, Izzy crouched down by his side.

"My Zeke," she cried out. She checked for a pulse, it was there. She inspected his body for any serious bleeding or broken bones, and luckily, he didn't have any. He was also moaning in his unconscious state.

"_Maybe he just needs a pick-me-up_," she thought, grinning impishly.

She lay down next to him, her left arm and leg wrapped around his body. With a sly giggle, she began to kiss him softly.

After a few seconds of one-sided smooching, he was unconsciously kissing her back. When he woke up, he let out a squeak of surprise.

"Oh Ezekiel," she purred, "you were wonderful."

"Say... say what, eh?"

"It was so good between us, I felt myself soar," she added, swooning.

After he stared at her in utter shock, she burst out laughing and held him close. "I love teasing you, you know that?"

"Just glad it's all in fun, eh," he said, chuckling a little. "Now, any idea where we are?"

"Not a clue. Want to go explore to see where we landed, or shall we stay here and make out?"

Ezekiel stared at her, then grinned. "What kind of a question is that, eh?"

Izzy giggled. "I know, right? Well, let's go explore then!"

She stood up and headed for the door of the ferris wheel, which was almost broken off. Ezekiel grabbed her arm and pulled her down, on top of him.

"Hey now," she cooed, grinning at him, "being forward is my job, my Zeke."

"But I'm happy to be alive," he protested, an impish grin on his face, "and I want to celebrate!"

Cupping her face and pulling it to his, he kissed her. When he lightly licked the insides of her mouth like she would do to him, she moaned happily. She wiggled and popped her foot in the air as the two continued to smooch.

* * *

**(Dressing Room Cam - Making a comeback.)**

**DJ** - "Chris said that the challenge is to find out what that weird flying object is doing here. He said once we find out the mystery to that, we win. But that doesn't make sense, the guy obviously had no part in that flying object."

**Beth** - "I think that Chris wants to find out what that thing is because he doesn't, and he doesn't want to waste the energy."

**Chris Maclean** - "Yeah, originally, it was going to be that Chef Hatchet was an alien who didn't know he was already dead. But since this flying saucer seems more interesting, I'm willing to dump that idea. Still, I'll have the old traps and obstacles be there."

**Leshawna** - "You know, I really miss Gwen. I'm stuck with the White Bitch and The Brick Chicken Wall as my teammates, and I doubt either of them have seen a real supernatural movie. I wish Harold was still on our team."

**Justin** - "I decided to let the teams be Lindsay and Owen, Beth and myself, Harold by himself. See, this way, if we lose, I can either blame Beth for slowing me down, Lindsay and Owen for messing around, or Harold for not being that useful. Either way, I'll win."

\He grins.\ "Devious? Maybe, but this is all necessary. You see, you always need a scapegoat."

* * *

Tyler was staring at the four young adults in front of him. He was blinking in disbelief.

"So...," he said after the explanation as to what happened to Ezekiel and Izzy, "you guys made the ferris wheel go really fast-"

"Duncan did that," Bridgette shouted, glaring at the punk.

"And then you guys stopped the ferris wheel suddenly, launching their carriage into the distance?"

"Bridgette did that," Duncan remarked, smirking at the surfer.

Tyler groaned and leaned against his car. "Oh God. Do you know what this means?"

"We're likely to get sued?" Geoff guessed.

"NO! It means Izzy and Ezekiel could be dead!"

Bridgette paled, letting out a terrified whimper. She covered her mouth with her hands, and her breath came short and panicked.

"There's no need to jump to the worst possible conclusions," Courtney declared. "We survived worse things on TDI, so I'm sure those two are okay. We merely need to find out where they landed."

"Probably all the way in Russia," Duncan joked, "or maybe South America, depending on what direction the ferris wheel is facing."

Bridgette covered her face in shame, while Courtney glared at Duncan. "This is all your fault, you know," she snapped at her boyfriend.

"Me? Bridgette hit the emergency stop button!"

"She was trying to help! You were fooling around with the ferris wheel! You're lucky no one caught us, or you'd be in jail for sure!"

Duncan shrugged, and turned to Tyler. "I'm driving."

"Hell no, I'm driving," Tyler snapped. "You've wrecked enough mechanics for today!"

* * *

**(On TDA.)**

Owen and Lindsay were searching a fake house, looking around with flashlights.

"Why are we here, Omar?" Lindsay asked him. "Um, I mean, Owen."

"Supernatural things always happen in the creepy homes," Owen explained. "Like in... um... that one movie. And that other movie!"

"Ohhhhh," she replied, nodding her head, "I know those movies! You're so smart, Owen!"

Owen chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head; this was a compliment he had never received before. "Gee thanks! And don't worry, Lindsay, I won't let anything supernatural get you."

"Awwww, thank you so much!"

Owen grinned, then winced. "Oh, I shouldn't have said that. Whoever says that gets killed by the murderer!"

Lindsay cried out in terror, then she blinked in confusion. "Wait, isn't that a horror movie?"

"Oh. Right."

Something in the next room clattered. Owen and Lindsay jumped, and shone their flashlights on the door.

"Should... should we open it?" she whispered.

"No, you have to let whatever it is open the door, because the more rooms you go into, the more likely you are to run into something bad."

On the other side, Chef in a glowing alien suit growled. "_I hate that cliché_," he thought. "_Only pansies don't explore! I'll show them!_"

The large man kicked the door down. Owen and Lindsay yelped and jumped in surprise, and Chef approached them slowly.

"Who am I?" he asked in a haunting voice. "Why can I not remember who I am? Are yo-oo-oo-oo-ou the cause of it?"

Owen and Lindsay grabbed each other in crippling fear. Both whimpered and cried out in terror.

"This is it, Owen," Lindsay wailed. "The aliens have got us!"

The very large guy screamed in terror and shouted, "I love you, Lindsay!"

"I love you too, Owen!"

The two faced each other and kissed, a final and sorrowful kiss. Chef Hatchet stopped his advance and asked, "Whoa, did I see tongue there?"

It slowly dawned on the two slowwitted blonds that the alien was not approaching them anymore. "Chef?"

"You're damn right I'm Chef! You two are out of this challenge!"

* * *

Tyler, Courtney, and the rest of the carnival goers were back at Playa des Losers. Courtney had taken authority, and was barking orders.

"Tyler, you go drive in the direction that ferris wheel carriage was launched," she ordered. "Geoff, you go with him. Duncan, go talk to the others and see if they know anything. Bridgette, hon, you go sit down, and please don't panic."

Before any of them could do what the CIT ordered, Katie came out into the parking lot. She took a deep breath of air, then noticed the others. "Hey guys," she called out. "I was just getting a breath of fresh air, and-"

"Can't talk now, Katie," Courtney shouted. "C'mon people, let's go!"

"What's the rush?" the sweet girl asked, approaching them.

"Ezekiel and Izzy were launched through the air from a ferris wheel ride by Duncan and Bridgette," Tyler said.

As Bridgette sobbed, Katie blinked. Then she, to the surprise of everyone, grinned. "Oh that explains a lot," she said, smiling and clapping.

"Excuse me?" Duncan asked.

"They're all right. They're on TDA."

There was silence, and then there was Courtney. "What? Are you joking? Please tell me you're joking."

"Nope, they're on it. I thought they had crash-landed from a flying saucer, but Sadie says that even though E-Scope insists she knows how to fly one of those-"

She was cut off as Courtney bolted into the hotel. The others followed, not quite as fast, and made it to the big TV where all the ex-contestants were watching. The commercial break was over, and it was focusing on Chris, who was sitting in the observation room.

"Welcome back to TDA," he said, grinning slyly. "If you're just joining us now, then let me clue you in on our invaders!"

He pointed to a camera where Izzy and Ezekiel were leaving the ferris wheel carriage. The redhead was looking around, obviously thrown off to the sight of the props and fake buildings around her. Ezekiel was catching his breath, his face flushed.

Courtney's face reddened in anger, and she threw her fists into the air. "AGAIN?! They got on the set AGAIN!?

"Not their fault this time," Tyler said, and he burst out laughing.

The CIT's rage was amplified by the jock's laughter. She whirled on Duncan and shouted, "This is all _your_ fault!"

Duncan shrugged. "Oh c'mon, it was coincidence, Princess!"

"Dude," Geoff whispered, looking scared himself, "shut up... AND RUN!"

The punk saw Courtney coming at him, and he bolted, his girlfriend in hot pursuit.

"Izzy and Zeke are on the show more than any of us at this rate," Gwen remarked, smirking.

Cody would have replied, but right now, he was holding Gwen's hand. Though he had been ever since the episode had started, all he could think about was that, and he was more happy than he'd ever been before.

"Hey, Cody," the goth girl said, snapping him out of his happy daze, "who you got your money on?"

"Hmmm? Oh, either Harold or Leshawna."

Chris Maclean, on the screen, was still talking. "Oh, and some of our contestants have already lost this contest! Here, watch this, it's so awesome!"

He pressed a button, and the footage of Lindsay and Owen being caught by glowing, alien-suited Chef Hatchet was played. When it got to the part where they kissed their "last," Tyler locked up, then let out a pained cry that rang throughout the hotel.

"Poor guy," Cody said as he watched Tyler run outside in tears.

* * *

The challenge was actually looking to be a real letdown, unless you find really pathetic attempts to solve a supernatural movie to be great entertainment.

DJ had been spooked by a very vocal crow. Panicking, he locked himself in the boys' trailer and hid under the bed.

Heather had run into Justin and Beth. When the three started an argument, a net collapsed on them, and Chef Hatchet walked in on them. "You three Earthlings are too easy," he growled. "Even when dead, I'm still whipping your butts."

Harold was horribly lost in the western set. He started to wonder if it was a cowboy, alien, supernatural movie. Though he was trying hard to find the fallen object, the idea of such a movie was so darn cool, he was trying to think out a script and plot.

This left Leshawna the only one who was still searching. Unfortunately, she had never seen a supernatural movie before, and was sure she was missing hints.

"I really should've seen Signs," she grumbled to herself. "I never even saw Close Encounters! Man, I really wish Harold was still on our team."

She stopped, then scratched the back of her head. "Errr, for victory reasons, I mean."

"Are you arguing with yourself?"

Leshawna jumped as Izzy leapt out from behind a prop tree. "You really shouldn't argue with yourself, out loud, while your every action is being filmed."

"E-Scope? Crazy white girl?" the sister asked in surprise. "Is that you?"

"This is a supernatural movie, I overheard you saying?" the redhead asked. "Then I may an angel, or I'm already dead, or maybe I'm... I'm..."

"Maybe you're a space man," Ezekiel said as he also came from behind the tree. "And when you crash-landed here, the oxygen made your mind wild, eh!"

Izzy scratched her head. "I kind of like it. Ooo, maybe I can control plants too!"

"There you go, that'll be interesting!"

Leshawna watched the two, then she grinned. "Hey, wait a minute. What's going on between you two?"

"What now?" Izzy asked, smiling innocently.

"You two are dating, aren't you?"

Ezekiel was surprised. "How did you knoo'?"

"Hey white boy, I can tell when two people are," she clasped her hands and posed in mock-romance, "so mad-crazy in wuv!"

The prairie boy chuckled and blushed. Izzy grinned at Leshawna and said, "Very good! Now, do you know _why_?"

"My guess would be that you two aren't getting along with others at the new resort," Leshawna guessed, tapping her chin. "I know a few of those people there are douche bags, so you two stuck by each other and found out you liked each other more than you would think.

"Plus, methinks E-Scope here taught Ezekiel a thing or two about women, which is why you are together. Plus, there has a reason you two showed up here together."

"BRAVO!"

Chris Maclean jumped out from behind another prop tree, clapping wildly; Leshawna, Izzy, and Ezekiel leapt in surprise.

"Leshawna, you are one smart sister," the host declared, "as sharp as you are curvy!"

The sister grinned, while Ezekiel tried to figure that out; it made no sense to him how curves and sharpness could be compared

"You solved the case, the supernatural reason why Ezekiel and Izzy are dating each other," Chris continued. "See, we already knew that these two were thrown in via a carriage of some kind, and we're guessing that had something to do with Izzy."

"E-Scope, Chris," Izzy declared. "You call me that, you haven't earned the right to call me Izzy!"

The host and Leshawna looked confused, so the redhead leaned up to her and whispered, "I only let people I really like to call me Izzy. And hey, Leshawna, you can call me Izzy too, since you're so smart."

"Girl, you're so crazy," Leshawna said, then grinned and patted her shoulder, "but you know what? You're all right."

The host recovered from Izzy telling him off, and then cleared his throat. "Well, since the Screaming Gaffers have won, I guess that means the challenge is over. So we have to go round up everyone.

"Oh, and Izzy? Zeke man? You two leave the set now, please, before I call security."

"Security is too scared of me," Izzy declared.

Chris raised an eyebrow, and snapped his fingers twice. The two very similar-looking bouncers walked up next to the host, and waited for an order.

"Holy crap, they managed to get all that honey off," Izzy shouted. "Run, Ezekiel, run!"

* * *

Later that afternoon, Ezekiel and Izzy were safe and back at Playa des Losers 2, exhausted after being chased by vengeful bounces.

The prairie boy was zonked, and it didn't help that Courtney, Eva, and a couple of the other ex-contestants were giving them the evil eye; they were obviously upset that he and Izzy had got back on the set.

"They don't really bother me," he had said to Izzy when she asked him, "I'm just thanking God that we survived that flight."

"My Zeke believes in God?" she asked, cocking her head to the side curiously.

"I do, eh. Does my Izzy?"

"Well, my faith isn't as strong, I think, but I do believe in Him in some sense. You see, I used to hate that there was an almighty being who could control and command everything, because that would mean someone could change everything on me!

"But then, there was this funny experience at school. I was talking with some other guys, and I was musing about why a large asteroid hasn't come and wiped out the majority of mankind; it concerns me, because I want to make sure I have the right people to survive an apocalypse with."

Ezekiel nodded. "Ayup, you doo'nt want to have a bunch of idiots and jerks as your fellow survivors."

"Exactly! Also, you might want a man you wouldn't mind repopulating the world with," she said, giggling. "But back to the story, you see, this blond girl who is very religious said this: 'Well, maybe that's what God does. He prevents us from all being wiped out'."

Izzy looked up at the ceiling and sighed happily. "She usually has a hard time with creeps at school for being the religious girl, but she's really sweet. She told me from time to time, after I'd tell her one of my wild adventures, that there obviously was a God 'because you are still alive after such dangerous experiences'."

"Does prove how we survived that ferris wheel flight, eh," Ezekiel pointed out, nudging her playfully.

Izzy giggled, then one of the hotel staff approached them. His broken English made it difficult for her to understand, but Ezekiel was able to translate when he talked in his native language.

"Manuel says there is a phone call for you in the lobby, eh."

Izzy's glee disintegrated. Grumbling something under her breath that Ezekiel couldn't pick up, she called back to him, "Be right back, Zeke."

* * *

Eva was sitting at the lobby, waiting for service; she had to talk about getting the sheets on her bed changed, and she didn't want questions why.

Where she was seated wasn't close to the front desk, so Izzy didn't notice her. The fitness buff was reading a magazine, and didn't notice the redhead until she said, "Y'ello, E-Scope speaking."

Eva could hear shouting on the other side, but couldn't make out what the person was saying; however, she could see Izzy flinch.

"I'm allowed to call myself what I want," Izzy shouted back. The redhead slammed her fist on the counter and added, "Did you call me just to yell at me? Jeez."

Eva was unable to hear what the person was saying still, but the voice was loud enough to hear how mad the person was. Izzy was frowning, and her body was clenching up.

"You know, that time, it was an accident," the redhead replied, crossing her free arm over her chest. "Don't blame me for that one...

"... Yes, it _was_ an accident! I'm telling the truth!"

Izzy stomped her foot. After a minute of silence on her part, the redhead flinched. "I am not an embarrassment! Stop saying I am! You're really pissing me off!"

More shouting on the other side, then Izzy replied, harshly. "Like _you_ would know anything about my life, jerk! You were never part of it!"

Eva was really starting to wonder who was on the other side, then Izzy said more. "You can't tell me to stop seeing my Zeke! He's my... I can call him what I want! Don't you..."

She was seething mad now, looking ready to slam the phone down. She suddenly calmed down slightly and tapped her foot impatiently; Eva guessed someone else was getting on the line.

"Hi," Izzy said in the phone bluntly, confirming Eva's suspicion. "What's up? ... I can talk to him however I want, he's not the boss of me.

"... Stop saying I'm an embarrassment! No, I'm not overreacting! You're both being..."

Izzy was silent for a few seconds, and then her face became red with anger. "E-Scope doesn't have to put up with this! You've never supported me, and now that I'm finally living my life, you try to interfere! So leave me alone, and stop telling me what I can and can't do!"

She slammed the phone down, hard; Eva wondered if she broke it. The redhead stormed off, and the fitness buff raised an eyebrow. More interested with Izzy being furious than getting that service she needed, she followed after her.

Eva caught up to her on the floor their rooms were on. Ezekiel was with her, and they were talking.

"It's just Courtney," Izzy lied, snarling. "She's really getting on my nerves."

Ezekiel put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a comforting squeeze. He was elbowed by a blue-suited fitness buff.

It was Eva, grinning at the redhead. "Well, Izzy," she said, using her real name deliberately, "you should be glad someone is trying to interfere with your life."

Izzy spun around and glared at her hatefully. The fitness buff cackled, going into her room. The redhead was now shaking in fury.

"I'm not sure what she meant by that, eh," Ezekiel said, looking hopefully at Izzy. She was staring at the floor, refusing to look at him.

"I cannot understand," she muttered, "why Noah's secretly dating her."

"I doo'nt knoo', eh," he said, shrugging. "Maybe they're embarrassed for people to knoo'?"

Izzy glared at him, so fierce that he flinched. "That's not funny," she hissed.

"Izzy-"

"THAT'S NOT FUNNY!!"

She walked over to her room and slammed the door behind her as hard as she could, almost breaking it. Ezekiel stood there, thunderstruck.

"I...," he stammered, shaking slightly, "I didn't mean it that way, Izzy..."

* * *

**(Warning, scene is maturing, but vital to the plot. Your choice.)**

Late that night, Ezekiel was bathing in the indoor hot tub. He sat there, lost in his thoughts.

He still couldn't understand what had upset Izzy so much. Replaying the scene, every word, every motion he and Izzy took, none of it helped. Ezekiel tried to think of what he did wrong.

The prairie boy tried to remember everything his mother and father had taught him about girls. He reviewed all the things that could offend them, anything that could explain why Izzy blew up at him.

"_Maybe it's something I said, something that I didn't understand what it means in the teen-speak, eh_," he thought, slapping the bubbling water. "_Or... maybe it related to her, and I doo'nt knoo' how._"

He climbed out of the hot tub for a little bit to lie on the cool ground, still thinking about that. Ezekiel wondered if this would be considered their first fight, despite him not getting mad.

After soaking in the bubbling, hot water for a few minutes, he pulled his toque down over his eyes. "_I really wish I had moo'r dating experience befur I started seeing Izzy,_" he thought. "_She's such a complex girl, I doo'nt think I'm ready to date someone like her, eh. It's not fair to her fur someone with my lack of social skills to be her boyfriend; she's far too-_"

The door opened, and Ezekiel turned to the door. Izzy was there, holding a towel in her hand.

"Zeke?" she asked, staring at him. "Oh, it is you!"

She smiled, tossed her towel to the side, then stuffed her tousle of red hair into her swim cap as she applied the head gear. She took off her top and skirt, startling Ezekiel at first, but then he noticed she was wearing her two-piece bikini underneath.

"Izzy," he said, very slowly, "a... a'boot what happened earlier-"

"Zeke, that was my fault," she said as she walked over. "You did nothing wrong."

She sat on the side, dangling her legs into the hot tub. The redhead sighed, and looked over at her boyfriend, her smile sad.

"Can you forgive me?" she asked. "My anger wasn't at you, but I directed it at you."

"Of course I do. Come here, eh."

He pulled her into the hot tub and hugged her. She nuzzled her cheek to his, letting out a happy sigh.

"I love being with you, my Zeke," she cooed. "You really do make me happy."

"I'm glad to hear that, eh," he said, kissing her cheek.

After the hug, she sat down on the inner circle of the hot tub and relaxed. "Zeke, do you think we're a good couple?"

"Of course, eh," he replied, sitting down next to her. "We-"

"Well, I'm just thinking about the future and all, eh," she said, then placed her hand over her mouth in surprise. "Oh my... I just said 'eh'!"

She burst out in a fit of giggles, Ezekiel flushing a little. "I think we've been seeing each other a lot. It's just... well, Zeke, you come from a close family, right?"

"Yes, I guess so, eh."

"Do you... do you think they'd like me?"

Izzy absent-mindedly twirled a finger around one of her curls. "It's just... I know a lot of people think I'm a freaky, crazy girl. And don't deny that, I know for a fact that people don't take to me too well. I mean, not many people like being around a girl who is a bomb expert, wanted by the RCMP, and has a taste for cherry chap stick."

She looked at him and asked again, "So do you think your parents would like me? Have you told them about me?"

Ezekiel nervously tapped his fingers together. "Well, see, you knoo' I doo'nt get 'oot often, eh? And so, I doo'nt use a telephone often, so I doo'nt pay too much mind to numbers-"

"I'm a little confused how that has to do with telling them about me, Zeke."

Ezekiel tapped his fingers together more, then sighed. "I doo'nt remember my home phone number. eh. I have to wait fur them to call me."

Izzy blinked, then burst out laughing. She rested her forehead on her shoulder and giggled more. "Oh Zeke, you really have stayed home too long."

He grinned, and patted her hand. "Izzy, I am sure my parents will like you, eh."

"You really think so?"

"I like you, Izzy, a whole lot. And if I like you, I'm sure my parents will too."

She grinned. "Great! I'd love to meet them a lot! You always speak so highly of them!"

"How a'boot your parents, Izzy?"

Izzy shrugged, and flicked at the water. "They never approved of any of the boys I dated beforehand. So I'm sorry, but I doubt they could approve of you. But you know, maybe you can change their mind. You know how my mother is a doctor?"

"Yes."

"Well, you want to be a doctor too, and that'd score some points with her. Also, speaking eight languages has got to impress her."

She giggled, then leaned against him. "If you do become a doctor, that means you'll be studying in college for eight years, right?"

"That's how long I believe you have to go fur it, eh."

"Well... the thing is, I have no idea what I want to study in college. I mean, all my skills involving tracking, weapons expert, stealth, costume experts, spying, and more... do they train spies in college?"

"I doo'nt think so, eh."

"Rats."

"Well, how a'boot... a writer?"

"Hmmm?"

"You could write action books, like Tom Clancy. Izzy, you've had some wild adventures and could make a great living writing about them! Make your own lady character who licks butt and-"

"It's 'kick butt', Zeke."

"Oh... yeah, if that's the saying, boy, I sure have embarrassed myself, eh."

He chuckled nervously, and she stared down into the water, looking ashamed.

"Zeke... not every story I've told is one hundred percent true." She sighed and stared at the bubbles. "And by that, I mean zero percent true."

"They're still great stories. I mean-"

"But aren't you upset?" she asked, looking at him sadly. "That I haven't been fully truthful to you?"

"Izzy, I figured you just get really excited when you talk, and you exaggerate."

"They're really big exaggerations."

"But I believe that's just how you are. And it really fascinates me how you can talk with such passion and gusto. You can always channel that energy into writing, and make one heck of an interesting lead female character."

She tapped her chin in thought, and then grinned. "You're so smart, my Zeke! I knew I dated you for a reason!"

The redhead seized her boyfriend's face, puckered her lips... and kissed his toque. He couldn't help but giggle as she continued to smooch his head wear.

"Do you like that?" she purred as she continued.

"Yes, I guess," he laughed.

"You do wash this, don't you?"

"Of course I do, eh." As Izzy continued to kiss his toque, she whispered, "Ezekiel, do you think I'm embarrassing?"

"What? Of course not, eh!"

"Really?" she asked. She had stopped the hat smooching, and looked at him, her eyes and voice vulnerable. "Because... I know I really do embarrass people."

"You doo'nt embarrass me, eh. Well... actually, when you flirt with me in front of others, but I'm not mad at you fur doing it, eh."

"I do that? When?"

"Like, um, when you asked me if I wanted to get to second base on the ferris wheel in front of the others, eh."

"Oh, I guess I do. I'm sorry, I'm really just flirting."

"I knoo' that, eh. I do like it," he said, "I'm just really not used to it, eh."

She giggled. "I hope not, Home School."

"I really want to be a good boyfriend, Izzy," he admitted. "I do lack experience and such, but..."

"You're the best boyfriend I've ever had," she whispered, smiling at him. "You're smart, polite, cute, you like adventuring with me, and you're so very good to me, I could never see myself throwing you aside.

"Just don't forget my birthday, or I'll kill you. It's October 13th, by the way."

Ezekiel smiled at her, charmed, even her death threat couldn't diminish his attraction. Cupping her face, he stared into her green eyes.

"Izzy...," he whispered, but he found himself at a loss of words (and he had an extensive vocabulary.

She stared right back, into his brown eyes underneath the toque. Izzy took off her swim cap and tossed it aside, then took the toque and pulled it onto her mane of red hair.

"We're rather Ezzy, aren't we?" she whispered, her eyes shining with glee.

He kissed her, as smooth as he could; he was nervous about how well he could, his only experience had been kissing her beforehand. Her pleased moan and giggle into his mouth were a good sign.

Izzy wrapped her arms around his lower back, pulling him close. She raised her head over his, kissing down and inserting her tongue into his mouth, wiggling it around playfully. Ezekiel gurgled in pleasure, and she giggled more. She found his whimpering moans to be so adorable, and tried to coax more out of him.

They continued for a little while, then Izzy turned around and sat with her back against his chest. Relaxing for a couple seconds, she wrapped her arm up and around his head, pulling him gently over her shoulder as she leaned her head back so they could kiss again.

Ezekiel wrapped his arms around her stomach, and caressed her stomach. He then did something he had wanted to do for a very, very long time ever since he got to know Izzy: he poked her belly button.

She giggled and squirmed in his arms, trying to slap his hands away, but he persisted to poke her outie, making her giggle with every poke. He stopped when she grabbed one of his hands, and accidentally pressed it against her breast.

Ezekiel flinched, and whimpered, "Soo'ry, didn't mean to do that, eh!"

Izzy had been flushing from the giggle-fest she just had, but now she was cherry red in the face. She smiled back at him, then stood up, her back facing him.

"You know, I've teased you an awful lot about getting to second base," she said, looking back at him as she talked. "I trust you enough, and I think I'm comfortable enough too, my Zeke."

She pulled her bikini top up and off of her, tossing it to the side. She continued to stand with her back to him, until she covered her breasts with one arm and turned around. Her smile was sly but still vulnerable, her demeanor calm but her body shaking anxiously.

Ezekiel felt like his heart was going to pound right out of his chest. The prairie boy's body temperature was skyrocketing, and his breath, what little he could do to breathe, was shuddering and long.

She approached him, leaning down and resting her forehead on his. The wet band of his toque dripped water down into his wide eyes, and he blinked rapidly to remove it; he was far too nervous to wipe it away with his hands, because that would mean raising them when his topless girlfriend was right in front of them.

"Zeke," she whispered, causing him to raise his eyes from her chest to her impish eyes, "there's no need to be so nervous. Heck, I'm not, and I can see your boobs right now!"

She giggled and placed her hands on his chest as she giggled and grinned. Now her breasts were exposed, and Ezekiel's gaze were back on them. She had reddish-tan nipples, and he recognized the scar she showed him some time ago. Now his heart was pounding so hard, he had to place his hands over it to calm himself down, even if just slightly.

"You like them?"

Izzy's voice was breathy and sexy. Ezekiel let out an airy laugh, and, with nervous and shaking hands, placed his hands on her breasts like she had her hands on his chest.

She took a deep breath, and cooed. "Yeah, that's it, my Zeke. Don't be nervous now, they're just globes of fatty flesh, used for nursing infants when one becomes a mother."

"O... okay, eh."

"But they are pretty sweet, aren't they?" she asked, giggling. "I'm a C-cup. Not quite as good as some of the other girls here, nowhere near as good as Lindsay, but-"

She never got to finish, because Ezekiel leaned in and kissed her on the mouth, stopping her monologue. She bat her eyes and then swooned, especially when he started to feel up her breasts.

His fingers stroked her soft skin, into her cleavage, around the areolas of her nipples, on the sides and underneath her breasts. She continued to moan happily, and his kissing was just as focused as ever; he even licked inside her mouth, and she let his tongue dominate her mouth as he caressed her breasts.

He started to crouch down, kissing her chin and her neck. He ran his tongue across one of her collarbones, making her laugh. Her laughs turned into grunts and moans of pleasure when he kissed the top of her breast. Izzy squinted, and ran her fingers through his brown hair.

"Just be gentle, my Zeke," she whispered, barely audible over the bubbling hot tub.

"Of course I will, my Izzy."

He kissed her nipple, causing her to giggle. When he ran her tongue around the areola, she hissed in air through her teeth, squinting in pleasure. Ezekiel was as gentle as he promised, but his tongue was sending pleasure shivers through Izzy's body.

"Oh... oh guh... nngh," she whimpered, having to bite her finger to keep from crying out altogether. Her free hand continued to comb his mess of brown hair.

"Just let me know," he said to her, "if I get too rough, eh."

"Zeke...," she whimpered, wanting to encourage him but could only whisper, "Oh, my Zeke..."

This was more than enough as encouragement to Ezekiel. He placed his lips over her nipple and sucked lightly. Izzy let out a high-pitched whimper, then a husky moan. As his courage grew, Ezekiel put his mouth completely on her breast and sucked deeply, and Izzy couldn't help but cry out.

Ezekiel panicked and withdrew. "Did I hurt you?" he asked, his eyes filled with concern. "Oh God, I didn't mean to-"

"No, no, I was just a little startled, that's all," Izzy said, staring into his eyes. "Please... go on. Izzy likes it."

Ezekiel nodded, and placed his mouth over her nipple again. As he sucked lovingly, Izzy let out a strained moan and panted, "Oh yes... Izzy likes that very much."

She really began to moan when he licked her nipple in the midst of his suckling. His right hand came up and cupped her breast to hold it in place.

After giving an ample amount of attention to her right tit, he went to the other one. Ezekiel saw the bite scar, and lovingly traced it with his fingertip. Izzy grunted, not in annoyance but in pleasure. "It doesn't hurt anymore," she whispered, smiling appreciatively, "it's okay."

"I just thought... you knoo'," he said, shrugging, "I always thought it was a sign of affection to trace your lover's scars."

"I've got a lot of scars. We could be here all night if you wanted to trace all of them."

"I'm okay with that, eh."

They both laughed, and he kissed the scar. He moved his mouth over to her nipple, and started to give it the same, loving treatment he gave her other breast. Izzy was back to whimpering and cooing in pleasure.

After suckling her for long enough, he raised up to her face. Nervously, he reached down and picked up some water from the hot tub before wiping his mouth with it. She burst into a fit of giggles.

"What, you're worried your mouth is gonna taste like my boobies?" she asked, barely able to talk between her arousal and giggling.

He gave her a sheepish grin, and she kissed him. Ezekiel swooned and wrapped her arms around her, pulling her close to him. Her naked breasts pressed against his chest, causing his blood to race and his heart to hammer harder than ever.

Izzy could feel his pounding heart against her chest, and he felt her heart against his chest too. It gave him comfort, knowing she was just as anxious as he was, even if she didn't show it.

They kissed for a few minutes, hands exploring each other's bodies. Izzy crouched down and kissed his chest, placing her mouth on his nipple like he had done to her. He hissed in air, not knowing how sensitive it was. When she ran her tongue against it, he breathed in sharply, a whinnying wheeze of pleasure.

She continued to do this, and then dug her finger into his belly button. Ezekiel squeaked out a chuckle amid his heavy breathing, too turned on to manage a real laugh. He was running his hands through the back of her hair, combing the wet, curly hair.

Izzy continued to lovingly torment his nipple with her tongue. As she licked, she suddenly remembered the first time she spied on Eva and Noah. Smiling at the thought, she reached down to his crotch.

Ezekiel hissed air in sharply, and his whole body shook. Izzy's hand was on his member, and even though her palm was on the outside of his trunks and not in them, he felt so vulnerable that he might as well have been naked.

"You're really hard, you know that?" she asked, the impish tone in her voice mixed with the erotic and nervous mood she was in now. "And you're pretty big... how big are you, my Zeke?"

"I... I...," he panted. He could feel beads of sweat coming from his forehead, despite having been soaking in a hot tub for some time now. "I doo'nt knoo'... I never... measured myself, eh."

She laughed, deep and throaty. "Oh, my Zeke, you goof," she purred, before she, very lightly, stroked his member.

Ezekiel tried to grind his teeth to keep from crying out, but he couldn't help it. He let out a high-pitched squeak, which he knew must have sounded very unmanly.

But Izzy loved it. She didn't want some butch, husky man. Izzy loved how he squeaked when turned on, how his moans had a lilt to them, and how he shivered when she touched him affectionately. She loved every bit of him, and was hoping to show that love in her actions.

"My Zeke," she whispered, kissing him on the mouth, her breath and lips hot. Her hand stroked up and down his manhood, massaging it under his trunks. Ezekiel's fingers curled from the sexual tension, and he felt his body burning inside from the arousal. He could barely focus, and kissing Izzy was his only way to stay focus.

"Izzy," he whimpered. "Oh God... Izzy..."

"Like that, my Zeke?"

"Izzy... I... I love..."

Neither of them heard the door open when it did. They didn't hear the person until she spoke up.

"What the hell is going on?"

Ezekiel flinched violently. He may have had his back to the door and was in a terrible daze now, but he recognized that voice. Izzy let out a small gasp, and ducked underwater.

"_Oh shit, did I forget to lock the door?_" she cursed as she stayed underwater. "_Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit..._"

"Just what are you doing here, Home School?" Eva asked, glaring at the back of Ezekiel's head.

The prairie boy turned around slowly, his breath frantic. He held up his hands in surrender, and whimpered, "Eva? What are you doing here, eh?"

"What the hell do you think I'm doing?" she asked. It would have been a stupid question since she was carrying a towel and wearing her blue bathing suit, but Ezekiel was more than distracted.

"Eva," he repeated, "could you... please-"

"Is someone in there with you?" she asked bluntly. When her eyes scanned the room, they widened in surprise when they spied something green lying near the pool side: Izzy's bikini top.

"Who's it that?" she asked, a cruel smirk coming across her face. "As if I don't know already."

As if on cue, Izzy came up for air behind Ezekiel. She peeked over her boyfriend's shoulder, and waved. "Hiyas, Eva."

The prairie boy had to resist very hard not to cry out; Izzy's naked breasts were pressed against his back.

Eva stared at her, the redhead's head topped with Ezekiel's toque. She scoffed, and said, "You should have locked the door, you creeps."

"Manuel says it doesn't work often, eh," Ezekiel whimpered, holding out his arms as if to shield Izzy from Eva.

The fitness buff cocked an eyebrow and then shrugged. "All right, whatever. I guess I'll just go, then."

She took another look at the discarded bikini top, and grinned cruelly. "I could just take this and embarrass you, Izzy," she said, "but I think you're already an embarrassment as it is now."

With that, Eva walked out of the hot tub room, slamming the door behind her. She felt surprisingly refreshed saying that, she had wanted to get back at Izzy ever since the crazy girl chewed her out at breakfast this morning.

Ezekiel was frowning at the closed door. "What a bitch," he swore. "Izzy, doo'nt let that get to you, she's not worth..."

He stopped when he realized Izzy was no longer behind him. He turned to see his girlfriend was at the other side of the hot tub, her hands resting on the inner seat as she leaned down on it. Her shoulders were shaking.

"Izzy?" he said, slowly approaching her.

She was crying. And not just a simple cry, but the kind of crying someone who's spirit has been completely crushed. When her sobbing was vocal enough to echo throughout the room, Izzy was covering her face. She was unable to stop the tears from coming.

It broke Ezekiel's heart. It hurt him so bad to hear Izzy cry like this, so defeated and anguished, that tears came to his eyes too. He approached her and put his hands on her shoulders. He tried to say something, but a lump in his throat prevented speech.

The prairie boy wrapped his arms around the crazy girl's bare shoulders, trying to calm the shaking. She held onto his arms for support, but was unable to stop crying.

Ezekiel felt his own tears rolling down his cheeks; he didn't know why Izzy was crying, but he felt as if someone just stabbed his heart too.

* * *

**End of Part 9.**

* * *

On this tragic note, I end chapter nine. Izzy's inner demon causing this pain will eventually be revealed, but not until near the end of this story.

I'd also like to add that the chapters may not come that quickly from now on, because some really bad things have occurred in my life. I'll keep on writing, just don't hold your breath; your face might turn blue like Dr. Manhattan.

And please, point errors out to me, especially gender errors. I really hope I made none during the love scene. \swallows nervously\ That would sure kill the mood.


	10. Three Words: I Love You

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

Titanic doesn't belong to me, that three-hour angst film belongs to the creators. Dusty Springfield's song belongs to her and her recording company.

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Thank you all for your concern about my well-being. It's still tough around here, but rest assured, I'm not dying. And even if I were to die, I'm a necromancer; my corpse will come back to finish the uncompleted job. Though I might mention brains a bit more.

* * *

**Chapter 10** - My Heart Will Keep Going and Going... No, Wait, That's Not How It Goes

* * *

Ezekiel was sure that when the others would be staring at him and making smart remarks when he was up for breakfast. Surprisingly enough, no one so much as gave him a second look at breakfast. Izzy wasn't up either, and that only heightened his worry.

Last night had worried him. After Izzy had cried from Eva's comments, she dressed without saying a word. He led her up to the room, and she said good night with a kiss on the cheek. He really wanted to talk to her, but he also wanted to give her her space since something personal was bothering her.

Ezekiel scanned the other patrons of the cafeteria, wondering who had been voted off after the supernatural episode of TDA. He couldn't, however, see anyone new. The prairie boy was sitting alone, and was feeling rather lonely. All he could think about was Izzy, and what he was going to say to her.

When someone sat down at the table, his first thought was, "_Izzy_," but it wasn't her. It was Bridgette.

"You look like someone with a lot on your mind, Zeke," she said. "Will Izzy mind if I chat with you for a bit?"

"I doo'nt think so, eh," he said with a sigh. "Bridgette, I'm really woo'ried a'boot Izzy."

"Really? Did you two have an argument?"

"No, not really, eh. I just..."

He sighed, and rubbed his forehead. "Bridgette, something is really bothering Izzy. I doo'nt knoo' what it is, but whenever she is reminded of it, she became very depressed."

"I've noticed that, a couple times," she said, drumming her fingers on her knuckles. "Is it getting worse?"

"Um, yes, I think it has bin, eh."

Bridgette nodded, and tapped her lips. "Zeke, let me ask you something, and please don't be offended.

"Okay, eh."

"Do you... do you really see yourself dating Izzy in the future?"

"What? What's that mean, eh?"

"Well, it's something everyone should think of when they start to seriously date someone," the surfer girl informed him. "Like, do you see yourself dating her a couple years from now?"

"You mean... like, if I could see myself spending my life with her, eh?"

"It's something to consider. You should always date someone you really think could be compatible with you. I mean, I know I am picky, it's why I really had to get to know Geoff before I dated him."

Ezekiel nodded, thinking about that. "Well, you knoo', I never... really thought a'boot a long-term relationship. I mean, I never even met girls until this shoo', then I blew it, and it wasn't until I really got to talk to Izzy that I thought of dating for the first time in my life..."

He twiddled his thumbs, looking at her. "Did you do any dating befur you met Geoff, eh?"

"A couple times," she admitted, running a hand through her blond ponytail. "Two of them are still my friends, one was a real jerk, and one kind of ended before it really started. Geoff seemed really different, and I really liked him.

"And well, I did like someone else on my team too," she added, blushing a little.

This caught Ezekiel's attention. "Really? Who, eh?" he asked, then he chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "I'm guessing it wasn't me."

"Sorry, but no," she said. "Tell you what. If you let me help you with your troubles with Izzy, I'll let you know who else I liked on the Killer Bass."

"Okay, eh," he said, cheerfully. "But can you tell me..."

He tapped his chin in thought. "There's something that I've bin thinking a'boot a lot..."

* * *

_Ezekiel was laying in bed all night, barely getting any sleep. He kept thinking about Izzy._

_"What we just did together... wow," he thought. He smacked his lips, remember the taste of her lips, her breasts, and her skin. She was so soft, and he found himself breathing in and out deeply. Trying to concentrate, he put aside the sexy thoughts._

_He thought about what this meant. Did Izzy want to continue to a physical relationship with him? Did she want to really date him? They were talking about careers, about life after TDA. Was it something he really wanted?_

_Izzy. The girl made up of a lot of mystery, excitement, and surprises. Being with her had been unpredictable, embarrassing at times, and enjoyable most others._

_Mother had always told him that love was being able to survive arguments, enjoy each other for what the other is, and spend the rest of your life with; she remembered their wedding vows._

_Father once said love was knowing you could stand someone for more than half an hour; Ezekiel noticed mother wasn't in the room when he said that. He had also said, in actual seriousness, he knew soon that he was in love with his mother, they had just taken their time for college, career, and to satisfy their own parents._

_Was he in love with Izzy?_

_He thought about it all night; he even wondered if it was something you had to think about. Maybe he was just distracted over the terrible way their time together had ended, thanks to Eva._

_Though when he thought of her, at her Izzy-est, he couldn't think of anything else. When she giggled, her wide grin, and the bounce of red hair as she cocked her head to look at him... that was enough to make him swoon._

_She had been the first one to give him a chance. She talked to him, listened to him, she had been his friend. Though he worried he might be attaching too much affection because she was the first in all of this, he couldn't deny how much he felt she could be the only one._

_Did she feel the same way? Did she want to be with him the rest of her life? Because he could really see himself stay the rest of his life with her. He'd never be bored, that's for certain._

* * *

"Bridgette?" he said, wringing his hands as he pondered all this. "What... what do you think love is?"

The surfer girl was startled by this question. "Zeke," she said, staring at him with wide eyes, "are you in love with Izzy?"

"It's hard for to tell, I've... never really had experience with this, eh."

Bridgette started to giggle. "Oh Zeke, no one ever really does. Haven't you ever listened to love songs, or seen a romantic movie, or something?"

"Yeah... but do they have to apply to me or something, eh?"

She tapped her fingers, and then began to sing a song lightly.

--

_I just want to be beside you everywhere_

_As long as we're together, honey, I don't care_

_'cause you've started something_

_Oh, can't you see? _

_That ever since we met_

_You've had a hold on me_

_No matter what you do_

_I only want to be with you_

_--_

"Something like that, maybe?"

Ezekiel thought about those lyrics (and Bridgette wasn't that bad a singer, he thought to himself). He smiled and nodded. "It does sound a lot like that."

"That's one of my favorite love songs," she explained. "It really explained my feelings for Geoff. To me, love is that feeling that you want to be with someone for all time. You won't get sick of them, you can endure their little quirks and habits, and no matter how long you spend with them, you will never get bored.

"I dare say," she added, smirking at him, "that you could never get bored with Izzy."

He blushed, nodded to this as Bridgette continued. "Do you think that you can endure all of her quirks? She is loud, impulsive, and from what we've gathered, she has quite a past."

Ezekiel nodded, then tapped his fingers. "Do you think it's too soon?"

"You've known her for, I believe, about two weeks, right?"

"Yes, but we've spent the majority of time together, eh," he said, still nervous. "Do you think it's too soon?"

She shook her head. "I don't think two weeks spent mostly together is too little of time to fall in love. I mean, it's too soon to, like, propose or something-"

"Oh no, no I wasn't thinking of that, eh!"

Bridgette couldn't help but laugh at how red Ezekiel was getting. "Zeke, I have to ask, have you told her you're in love with her?"

"No... no, I haven't, eh," he admitted. "Think it should be soon?"

The surfer girl was about to answer, but Eva walked by, and her dangerous aura overpowered both of them. "What's going on here?" she asked them. "You bragging about getting to second base with Izzy to her?"

Ezekiel turned bright red, and hid his eyes underneath his toque. Bridgette stared at him incredulously, then at Eva.

"What are you talking ab-"

"She was jerking him off while she was topless, in the hot tub last night," Eva continued, her sinister grin directed right at Ezekiel. "You should have seen it."

Like her muscles, Eva's voice was powerful. Deliberate or not (more likely deliberate), all of the others could hear what she was saying. Now all of the ex-contestants were looking at Ezekiel, who was shaking in horror; Bridgette could only stare at Eva, flabbergasted by her audacity.

"His voice was getting all squeaky and whimpering," Eva said. "He looked ready to burst any minute-"

"Shut up, eh."

Ezekiel was looking up at Eva now, and his face was red not only through mortification, but infuriation. "You shut up, how dare you."

"You're telling me off?" Eva asked, her grin flip-flopping into an angry scowl.

"Yes, I am," the prairie boy shouted as he stood up, slamming his palms on the table. "You... you... you're no lady, you big jerk!"

Eva scoffed. "That your best attempt at an insult?"

"If he cannot think of a better one, I can."

Izzy was standing near the door into the cafeteria, hands on her hips, her lips curling up in a snarl.

"You whore-faced, fitness addict, hypocritical hippo," Izzy shouted as she stomped towards Eva. "You go blabbering about my Zeke and me, and I never told anyone here about your never-ending sex romp with Noah."

Eva's facial expression went from teeth-baring tigress to discovered murder suspect. Noah, who was sitting with Katie, Sadie, and Trent, nearly choked on his cereal and spat it all out.

"Wait, Noah and Eva?" Duncan asked, raising part of his unibrow. "Those two? You kidding me?"

"They go at it about as much as you and Courtney," Izzy said, pouting with her lips up. "I honestly think it's disgusting, you two couples have no shame."

Eva was heaving, and she slammed her fist on the table Bridgette and Ezekiel were at. "You... you can't prove it."

"I think your guys' reactions proves it quite well," Tyler remarked.

The fitness buff snarled again, and then stomped out of the cafeteria. Noah's eyes kept looking between where she left and his table mates.

"What just happened?" he asked them, looking as if someone had smacked him across the face.

Izzy let out a disgusted grunt and stormed out of the cafeteria. Ezekiel, unlike Noah, did not hesitate to hurry after her.

Bridgette watched him go, then leaned back in her chair. What just happened had stunned her too, and she was rather tired of these vicious spats that kept erupting among them.

It startled her when Geoff sat down next to her, a big smile on his face. "That sounded pretty hot, when you think about it, Bridge," he said, wiggling his eyebrows. "Hot tub, bonding time."

Bridgette sighed and slammed her forehead against the table. Geoff's smile was replaced with a confused look.

"_Oops, did I blow it?_" he thought.

* * *

Ezekiel found Izzy sitting alone on a couch, her arms crossed and face still scrunched up in a pout. The prairie boy sighed, and sat down next to her.

It was quiet for about a minute, and Izzy, like she normally would, broke the silence. "Eva brought up last night to embarrass you, right?" she asked.

"Yes, yes she did, eh."

Izzy sighed and shook her head. "Damn lock on the hot tub door."

"Manuel says it's broken, and they're trying to fix it."

"Who's Manuel?" Izzy asked. "Oh, the Spanish man?"

"Yes. He's from Barcelona."

"I barely know him. Every time I come near him, he shouts, 'Marabella, she crazy! She's so crazy', and runs off."

"I'll talk to him a'boot that. I doo'nt like people calling you 'crazy'."

Izzy scoffed, staring at the floor. "Everyone does, my Zeke. You aren't going to get them to change, no more than I can get them to call me E-Scope. People just don't care."

She curled up in the corner of the couch, and lazily punched her palm. "Zeke, do you resent dating me?"

"No, of course not! Izzy..."

He reached over and took her in his arms, pulling her onto his lap. "Izzy, I never resented dating you in the least, eh. I love everything you've done fur me, I love talking to you, I love being with you...

"I love you, Izzy."

She gasped, her hand over her heart as if to keep it from flying away. Her green eyes were glowing, yet very vulnerable. Izzy continued to stare at him, her breath very light.

"You... you do?" she whispered. "Even though I'm wanted by the RCMP, that I spy on couples here having sex, and that I like pizza without the sauce?"

"Yes, yes, and yes, eh."

Izzy stared at him, blinking her wide, green eyes. She had always wondered if a guy could fall in love with her. She knew she came off as crazy and undesirable to many, she knew she was even trying sometimes.

It had been something that had kept her up at night, trying to think of what she was going to do with Ezekiel.

* * *

_"I know it's not fair for him," she thought as she coiled her curl around her finger. "I'm crazy, I do some things even I don't get at times. I really wish I could be better for him..."_

_She sighed heavily. After Ezekiel had led her to her room, she had flopped down on the bed, still soaking wet and in her bikini. She had tried to make a 'wet angel' on the bed by flapping her arms and legs, to distract herself, but she couldn't stop thinking about Ezekiel._

_There had been other boys in her life, before Zeke, before even Owen. She had tried to be presentable, but every boy looked at her strange when she talked. Almost every time she opened her mouth, they grimaced or shriveled up in fear. Owen had been the first not to, but he had a lot of issues that Izzy felt wouldn't be compatible with her._

_Ezekiel's habits were so much more tolerable. He was working on his nose picking, and that didn't even bother her so much. Sure, she was a little concerned that he might really be sexist, but after "educating" him, she felt she was too tough on him._

_He listened to her. He asked her questions, he trusted her judgment, and he liked her. He really and truly liked her!_

_She felt comfortable around him too. She felt like she could tell him the truth about things, even the things that disturbed her deep down; Izzy feared they would drive a clean-cut boy like him away, so she never dared. She was also comfortable with him, she felt like she was made to nestle in his arms._

_"Of course you're comfortable with him, you dolt," she chastised herself. "You just let him suck on your boobs, hard to imagine you wouldn't be comfortable with him otherwise."_

_Izzy stared up at the ceiling, wondering what to do. Eventually, Ezekiel would get fed up with her and leave, right? She knew it would happen, it happened with Owen; though that was more him being scared and pushing him towards a serial killer, but still._

_She wanted so bad to trust her heart to Ezekiel. Could she?_

* * *

"Izzy?"

The redhead was so lost in thought, reflecting over what she was pondering over last night that she was in her own world. Ezekiel had to give her a little shake to snap her out of it.

"Sorry, where am I?" she asked, tapping her temple. "Sometimes I forget where I am after a lot of thinking, because my mind shoves away some info to process all of what I'm thinking."

"Izzy, you do remember what I just told you, right?"

She bit her lip, giving him a little nod. "Are you sure?" she asked, looking to the side. "You really sure you love me, Zeke? Don't I put you through a lot of embarrassment?"

"No way, my Izzy," he said, affectionately caressing her cheek. "Sure, sometimes you do say things that make me blush around others, but it's never the 'Dear God, I wish I were dead or under a rock' kind, like Eva just did to me, eh. It actually really flatters me."

"It does?"

"Of course, eh. When you say those things, I knoo' it's because you really like me, and it's your way of showing affection. And though I look like I'm trying to disappear under my toque, I'm really thinking of how lucky I am, that my girlfriend is so fond of me that she'll proudly declare how much she likes me, eh."

Izzy managed to smile, her green eyes still nervous. "I... I always thought girls like Bridgette were more your kind."

"Who's to say you have to set guidelines for who you fall fur, eh?" Ezekiel said. "Mom always thought she'd fall for a foreign man befur she met Dad, eh, it had been her desire up until she met him."

"I just... I don't know-"

"Izzy," he said, calm but firm as he put his hands on her shoulders. He cleared his throat, as if preparing to say something big, "it's partly your fault, you should know that. Someone told me something that sounded a lot like us...

"Ever since we met, you've had a hold on me, eh. And I'm being honest when I say, I only want to be with you, my Izzy."

He kissed her, as gentle as possible. When he parted, Izzy had a single tear coming down one of her eyes. She wiped it away, and whispered, "Oh, my Zeke..."

"I love you, Izzy."

She smiled at him, placing her palm on his cheek as she whispered back, "I love you too, my Zeke."

They kissed again, passionate and slow. Izzy leaned him back into the corner of the couch, pressing herself close to him as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Neither was sure how long they kissed, except when they needed a little breather, they rested their foreheads against each other.

Izzy, panting softly, rubbed her nose against Ezekiel's. "I'm so glad I approached you that night, my Zeke."

"Me too, eh. You saved me from drowning, remember?"

She giggled, kissing the tip of his nose. "Yep. You owe me one for that, still. And since you got to second base with me last night, there's another mark."

"Hey, if I remember correctly, you got to second base with me too, eh."

"... Oh yeah, I did. Want to do it again, my Zeke?"

Ezekiel's heart pounded at the thought. It must have been evident on his face, because Izzy giggled some more and traced a finger over his cheeks. "You have the most adorable blush, Zeke."

"Well, as... wonderful as that would be," Ezekiel said, swallowing hard, "there was some other place I thought you might like to go, eh."

"Ooo, what?"

Before he could answer, there was a furious roar from the cafeteria, followed by a high-pitched scream. Ezekiel and Izzy stood up, startled. They were even more startled when Owen came through the door to the lobby (quite literally, Owen knocked it off its hinges as he tore through).

"GET BACK HERE, YOU SON OF A BITCH!!"

Tyler was in hot pursuit, his hands outstretched in a throttling gesture. "You girlfriend stealing tub of lard," he was shouting as he ran after Owen, "come back here! I'm gonna turn you inside-out, and then I'm gonna take you apart!"

"He doesn't have threatening down that well, does he?" Izzy asked Ezekiel.

Owen, despite being near three hundred pounds, was actually managing to avoid being caught by Tyler. Some of the other ex-contestants came to watch the chase, or merely observed it as the large boy and the jock tore through several rooms. Between Owen's large, clumsy girth and Tyler's reckless coordination, they were breaking things around the hotel faster than if they were intentionally using sledgehammers.

"C'mon, let's go, eh," Ezekiel said to Izzy, taking her by the wrist and leading her out of the hotel.

"Yeah, never good to be around when the ex is voted off," Izzy remarked as Owen broke a table in his frightened retreat.

Ezekiel wasn't sure if she was talking about Tyler or Owen with that statement. All he knew was that he heard Courtney, Gwen, and Trent shouting at Tyler to calm down, and Manuel yelling, "Marabella! They loco, crazy people running around!"

* * *

"Oh no... you really want to go there?"

"Yes, eh. I know you'll love it."

"But, aren't you nervous?"

"I think I've got past being nervous after being with you enough times, eh."

"Are you sure, my Zeke?"

Ezekiel nodded, grinning at her. He reached up and curled one of her orange strands around his finger. "My Dizzi-Izzy, you've made me the adventurous one."

The redhead cackled, and clapped her hands. "All right then, Zeke! But you do realize, that since they just had an episode, they aren't going to be broadcasting."

"Well that's why Chris Maclean doesn't have security outside today, so we can sneak into the set better, eh."

"It's less fun that way, my Zeke."

"Yeah, but we're doing this mostly for you, eh," he reminded her. "You wanted to warn Beth a'boot Justin. He is a scheming jerk, isn't he?"

"Like you wouldn't believe."

They talked as they snuck in. Izzy would press up against walls, make sudden halts, flips, and ducks, while Ezekiel basically walked behind her.

"Who else is still in the contest besides them? I doo'nt remember the names vury well, eh."

"DJ, Lindsay, Harold, Leshawna, and the evil one."

"Who? Oh, Heather."

Izzy had climbed a tree, and was peering around. Ezekiel, who had never climbed a tree in his life, waited patiently underneath. When he noticed he could see up her skirt, he stepped back and watched from a proper distance.

"I wonder why her hair hasn't grown back yet, eh," he mused aloud.

"I suspect she's a slow grower, as far as hair. Her nails grow really fast."

"How do you knoo' that, eh?"

"She kept making Lindsay clip them all the time, before the inevitable betrayal."

Izzy eventually slid down the tree, and then she and Ezekiel headed towards the trailer park in the abandoned film lot. The seven remaining competitors were hanging around, chatting on of their days off.

Lindsay and Beth were talking, both about their love lives. Beth was pining over Justin, and Lindsay was thinking about the two men she had feelings for, Tyler and Owen. Both of them were very concerned, and Izzy really wanted to cut in.

Harold was making small talk with Leshawna. The two were friends by now, though the lanky nerd obviously wanted to be her boyfriend. Ezekiel, who remembered how Harold had been the only one to talk with him during his short stay on Wawanakwa, wished he could help out.

DJ and Heather were sitting next to each other, but neither was looking at the other. Justin sat nearby, looking into a hand mirror, correcting his eyebrows and teeth.

"So, who do we approach first?" Izzy asked Ezekiel.

Before he could reply, Chris Maclean stepped into the scene. "Hey actors," he said, clapping his hands, "I know you all wanted a break, especially since starting with the next challenge, you all will be after each other's blood!"

Beth and Lindsay exchanged nervous glances. Harold looked at Leshawna hopefully, but the sister looked more than eager to start that kind of melee.

"So what is it, a side challenge?" she asked.

"Yep! Like the eating contest, the battle of the sexes, that we had on TDI, we're going to host a new challenge where the losers don't have to worry about being voted off," Chris said. "This one, you can work with whoever you want, but then you're going to have to work on who picks the choices of the reward!"

"Reward? What reward?" Heather asked, her attention caught.

Chris grinned, very happy someone asked that. "That's a surprise!"

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Where surprises are ruined.)**

**Harold - **"A surprise prize? Awesome! Maybe if I win it and give it to Leshawna, she'll want me back again! Yes!"

**Lindsay** - "Bella and I are going to work together, but to be honest, we have such complex guy problems on our hands, I don't know how we can focus on the challenge." \She sighs.\

**DJ** - "Chef Hatchet ordered me to work alongside Heather. I have no idea what's up with that, how is working with that mean-spirited girl gonna help me be a tough guy?"

**Heather** - "DJ's been awfully forward with me these days, assisting me and now he's asking to help me on this side challenge. I wonder what's up with that, he's _not_ a schemer, he doesn't even have the balls to stand up to anyone bigger than him. Though he is rather big to begin with, so I guess that's nature's way of keeping him alive."

**Chef Hatchet** - "Tough guys always have a bitchy girlfriend. One of these days, Heather will push DJ too far, and he'll give her a good, old-fashioned pimp slap to put her in her place." \He chuckles evilly.\ "Everything's going to plan."

**Izzy** - \She appears from behind the clothing rack.\ "That bastard is trying to hook up sweet, honorable DJ with evil, psycho Heather? How dare he!!"

**Ezekiel** - \He appears from underneath the counter.\ "What's a 'pimp slap', eh? Is that what happens when you break open a zit or something?"

* * *

Izzy was grinning impishly as Chris Maclean was talking to the campers. "We're so lucky he threw this surprise challenge! What if we win it?"

"That's not really fair to them, is it?" Ezekiel asked.

"You should have been in this contest," she hissed. "I'm gonna get back at Chris Maclean with every opportunity I can get!"

Ezekiel smiled and kissed her cheek. "I gotta get you something special in return, eh."

"Let's make out in the Dressing Cam next time we sneak in, I want to royally piss off Eva and Courtney."

"You will all be happy to know," Chris was saying to the seven contestants, "that this side challenge will be based on a movie I'm sure you all know:

"A movie about a big ship that hits an iceberg and goes down, but your heart will go on!"

The three guys all groaned in misery, the four girls (even Leshawna) squealed happily. Harold frowned and kicked the dirt in frustration.

"Dang it, Chris," he cursed. "Thanks for bringing back painful memories. Do you _know_ how long my sister and my mom hogged the TV at our house, watching that movie over and over again?"

"You too, huh?" Justin grumbled. "Mom wouldn't stop gabbing about it, said it was as beautiful as my abs."

"Boys, boys, boys," Chris said, patting the two disgruntled males on the shoulder, "for the record, I feel your pain. I hate that movie too, hate the song, hate everything except for Kate Winslet's nude scene. But it wasn't my pick, it was Chef's."

Chef Hatchet walked by, wearing a dress very similar to the one Winslet wore during the big boat sinking part of the movie. "I worked hours making this dress, and damn it," Chef roared, "I'm gonna put it to use."

"Get a real hobby, man," Chris moaned. He elbowed Harold and said, "You've got lots of hobbies, right? Get him on one, he always wants a second opinion on those dresses."

"I know karate."

"Whoa, don't teach him that, dude. Okay then, actors and actresses, here is the deal:

"We are going to escort you to the giant ship set, and your goal is to find the priceless Jewel of Wawanakwa. Find it, steal it from someone else if you have to, just come up to the front of the ship-"

"The deck, Chris," Harold said.

"Whatever. Now, you all will begin the search before this episode begins to air, and my introduction will explain to the viewing audience what you are all doing."

"That's new," Beth pointed out. "Why are we doing that?"

"Because it was either that, or let Chef Hatchet do the beginning scene in the movie, dress up as old Rose and discover the drawing of him topless."

All of the young adults, including Izzy and Ezekiel, winced at the terrible, terrible thought.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Wincing too.)**

**Heather** - "You have to seriously wonder what is up with Chef Hatchet. The guy doesn't belong on a show, he belongs in a straight jacket. But we could make it pink and froofy, just to appeal to him."

**Leshawna** - "Harold's knowledge of ships coupled with the fact that, well, the boy is rather good at this game, makes him an excellent partner. But I don't want the string bean to think I'm coming on to him if I ask..." \She sighs.\ "Why couldn't he have fallen for someone else with weird skills, like Izzy or Eva?"

**Chris Maclean** - "Seriously, Chef actually painted a picture of him posing bare-chested. I sometimes wonder why I hired that guy."

**Chef Hatchet** - "The longer I have to wait for my paycheck, the weirder I get!"

**Izzy and Ezekiel** - \They are making out, her wearing his toque. As he kisses her neck affectionately, she grins at the camera and waves.\ "Hey Courtney, hey Eva, we made it on the show again! Neener neener neener!"

* * *

Izzy and Ezekiel were following them, hiding behind props and large barriers. The two continued a whispering conversation.

"What are they talking a'boot, eh?" Ezekiel asked. "I doo'nt watch a lot of movies."

"Titanic, my Zeke," Izzy said. "I only went to see that movie once, and that was to see the damn boat sink. Highlight was the guy bouncing off the propeller, that was hilarious! I got thrown out shouting, 'Bounce another one off! Pinball, pinball, rah rah rah'!"

Ezekiel chuckled, and asked, "Is it one of those movies Tyler calls a 'chick flick'?"

"Yes, but I hate chick flicks, remember?"

"Yep, so let's rent a zombie movie after this challenge is over?"

"You know me way too well. Though you know, Kate Winslet was pretty hot when she doffed her clothes."

Ezekiel scratched under his toque, looking baffled. "I've wondered, you girls sometimes comment on how attractive women are, eh. Do you just knoo' these things, because I've never heard of guys saying other men are handsome?"

"It's the former, we girls are just much more observant."

"Okay, eh. But we guys knoo' when a guy is unattractive, right?"

"Of course."

"Because Chef Hatchet is a dress makes me very uncomfortable, eh."

"Oh, me too," she whimpered. "He really doesn't have the thighs for that kind of dress."

"Gah," Ezekiel cried, "you said 'thighs,' eh."

"I'm sorry!"

* * *

**(At Playa des Losers 2)**

Courtney sighed as she sat down in a chair. "Tyler, Owen, you two are going to sit as far away as possible while we watch this, got it?"

Tyler growled in response. Owen whimpered in response. "All this fighting over a blond bombshell," Eva grumbled. "Honestly, they're a dime a dozen."

"You want a fist in your face?" the jock snarled, earning a snarl right back from the fitness buff.

"Tyler, do you need a time-out?" Duncan asked.

"Guys, please, can't we get along for one night?" Bridgette asked. "We're lucky Cody knew about this episode."

"Where is he, anyway?" Geoff asked. He was seated right next to her, holding her hand.

"I think he and Gwen are spending some time together," Trent said. Most of them were surprised he was smiling, some wondered if it was sincere. "It's awesome that the two are happy together."

"Are you really happy for them?" Sadie asked him, intrepidly tapping her fingers together.

"Yeah, I mean, she was your girlfriend at one point," Katie said. "I never knew if you're supposed to always hate your ex."

"I couldn't hate Gwen," Trent said. "Cody once told us that if Gwen was happy, he would be happy. Now I know he was speaking the truth: if Gwen is happy, I'm happy too."

Both Katie and Sadie cooed in delight. "That's so sweet," Sadie squealed, throwing her arms around Trent.

"Anyone seen Izzy and Ezekiel?" Bridgette asked. "I don't see them either."

"Izzy was sulking off last time we saw her," Duncan remarked. "They're probably up sulking in her room, rounding bases."

Bridgette sighed as Courtney slugged her boyfriend's arm. The surfer girl wished she had a chance to talk to Ezekiel again, to help him out with Izzy. She didn't know how much of what Eva had said was true, but if they were indeed that far, Bridgette was hoping both knew what they were doing.

Total Drama Action started up, and Chris's grinning face appeared before them all.

"Welcome to an awesome special, between challenges-challenge, on Total Drama Action!

"When last we left the actors, they were sent on a hunt to find the mysterious UFO that was seen soaring over the set! Lindsay and Owen shared a kiss, Harold got lost, and in the end, Leshawna was the one who discovered that the 'aliens' were none other than our little trespassers, Izzy and Ezekiel!

"The Killer Grips were forced to vote off a member, and sadly, our first season's winner, Owen, was chosen to go. Seems like smooth man Justin did some convincing among the others, though it's leaving Lindsay with some questions on which man she wants; provided, of course, that Tyler doesn't kill Owen, or vice versa.

"Well, this surprise challenge is going to be Titanic-themed! It's going to be a hunt for the Jewel of Wawanakwa among the seven remaining challengers: Beth, DJ, Harold, Heather, Justin, Leshawna, and Lindsay!

"Who is going to win this free-for-all contest? What is the prize for winning? And isn't it a relief that we don't have to worry about Izzy and Ezekiel sneaking in again, since this contest was made on the fly?

"This is gonna be awesome," Chris Maclean said as he held up his hands for dramatic effect.

As he talked, Izzy appeared behind him and did bunny-ears on him.

"What the hell?!" Courtney, Duncan, and Eva shouted in unison.

"Oh man," Noah said, and then started to laugh, especially when Ezekiel did 'moose antlers' behind Chris, and Izzy was suppressing laughter.

"This episode is already in motion, and the actors are roaming around the large ship set, on Total! Drama! ACTION!"

As the theme song played, Courtney began hammering the armrests of her seat. "Those! Two! Snuck! On! AGAIN!"

"Wonder if they brought Gwen and Cody," Noah remarked, chuckling; however, one look from Eva silenced him.

* * *

Gwen and Cody were not on the set of Total Drama Action. They were in her room, making out on the bed. Gwen was on top, him running her hands through her dyed hair, her hands on his thin shoulders.

The tech-geek was not the best of kissers, but he was learning really fast. Gwen paused to take a breath, and couldn't help but laugh; his lips were smeared with green lipstick.

"Sorry, should have wiped it off before we started," she said, chuckling as she wiped some of it off.

"No way, Gwen, I wanted this," he said, giving her a goofy grin. "I have to admit, I used to dream about having green lipstick smears on my face."

She smirked at him. "Oh really? And how far did your fantasies go, Mr. Code-Miester?"

He smirked right back, and for the first time ever, she found that gap-tooth grin to be attractive. The goth girl ran a hand through his brown hair, and rested her forehead on his. "C'mon, spill the beans, Cody. How far did you get in your dreams about me, hmmmm?"

"I'm living it right now," he said, batting one of her green bangs.

"You only dreamed of first base with me?" Gwen asked, laughing. "Oh c'mon, I have a teenager brother, and I know he dreams of aiming farther than first base."

"Well," he said, "c'mon, Gwen, I don't wanna ruin the mood."

"I wanna know," she exclaimed, and she went to tickle him on the sides fervently. Cody, who happened to be very ticklish, burst into laughter and thrashed around.

"No no no," he cackled.

"Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

Though he was being tickled nonstop, Cody was delighted, mainly because Gwen was so happy. Her pale face was lit up joyously, something that had been a rare sight, and now he was the cause of it.

"C'mon, tell me," she chanted, "I can tickle all day if need be!"

"Gah! I never imagined going to second base to you," Cody shouted, barely able to breathe and desperate, "because I... had... a hard time... imagining... you... topless."

Gwen stopped tickling him and cocked an eyebrow. "What? C'mon, you know what a woman looks like topless, right? Don't you have the internet?"

"Yeah, but Gwen, it's not that easy. See," he said, his shy grin back, "well, it's a combination of things. Never seen a girl naked in real life before, then there's that I really you, and...

"And... I have no idea what color your nipples would be."

Gwen blinked. Then she burst out laughing. She collapsed on Cody, shaking with mirth.

"What color are they?" she asked among her laughs. "What on earth do you mean?

"Oh, you mean because I have pale skin, green hair and lips, you think I got, what, blue-green nipples?"

Cody giggled, shrugging his shoulders. "Well, I dunno. Sorry to ruin the mood, Gwen."

"Whacha mean?"

"Well, I didn't mean to bring up your, um, uh-"

"Boobs," she finished. "Cody, I think this is the hardest I've laughed in a long time."

He grinned. "Ooo, laughter turns you on? I'll have to remember that."

She hummed joyfully, and kissed his nose. "Maybe next time, Cody hon."

The Code-Miester raised his eyebrows in confusion. "What? I'm making you laugh right now."

She smirked at his 'smoothness.' "No, you goof. Maybe next time, you can finally find out what color my nips are."

The look of surprise and excitement made her laugh more. To Cody, the sound of her laugh and the sight of her smile were better than second base might be; however, he wasn't going to put money down on that quite yet.

* * *

Izzy and Ezekiel were now exploring the ship set, trying to find this Jewel of Wawanakwa. The prairie boy had suggested they look in the rooms inside the ship, but most of them turned out to be prop doors, not actual rooms.

"You really don't need rooms for a ship that's here just for sinking," Izzy explained to him.

"Was that the whole point of the movie?"

"No silly, that movie's whole point was to see Kate Winslet topless."

"Boobs are nice, but I think it'd be awkward to be admiring a half-naked woman in a theater full of complete strangers, eh."

"Oh, I know, they were so mad at me for wolf whistling."

Ezekiel tapped his chin, stroking the little hairs. He tried to think of where Chris would hide the Jewel of Wawanakwa, and tried not to let the very distracting thought of Izzy wolf whistling at a naked woman sidetrack him.

"Izzy," he said, "where was the scene where the actress was topless?"

"Jack's room, why?" she asked, then her eyebrows shot up. "Oh, I see, you want to reenact the scene, don't you?"

Ezekiel felt his face heat up. "Gah! No, that's not what I was thinking of-"

"Aww, why not? Don't you want to see my boobs again?"

"Very much, but I was thinking if Chris Maclean was going to put the necklace somewhere on this ship, it would be somewhere in the only scene he'd remember."

Izzy pondered this, and snapped her fingers. "That's brilliant! Quick, to the lower class cabins!"

Making a quick dash, barely missing Heather and DJ, the young couple were soon testing doors in the lower class area. Izzy, in her excitement, managed to pull a few fake doors off of the frames, exposing the wall behind them.

"I found it, I think," Ezekiel said after a short while. He walked into the room, which looked like an artist's studio. The bowl of fruit in the center of the room looked inviting, and Ezekiel popped one of the grapes in his mouth.

"There's something wrong with these grapes, eh," he mused as she chewed.

"That's 'cuz it's fake fruit, my Zeke," Izzy said as she looked around the room.

The concept of fake food was rather confusing to Ezekiel. " 'Fake'?" he repeated, and popped another wax grape into his mouth. Chewing thoughtfully, he mulled over what the point of it was.

"I found it! I found the Jewel of Wawanakwa!"

Izzy was holding a necklace in her hand. The chain was gold, and the blue gem socketed in it had a bust of Chris Maclean etched in in silver. It looked expensive, but Ezekiel had the feeling it was just a well-made fake.

"Let's go turn this in," Izzy declared, swinging it around her finger. "I wonder if Chris will give us the reward."

"I doo't it, eh," Ezekiel said with a shrug. "We're not even supposed to be here. He might just get mad."

"Even better!"

Ezekiel couldn't help but laugh at his girlfriend's cheer. He plucked a third fake grape and juggled it in his hand. "So, is the point of having fake fruit like have a v'ees with'oot flowers in it, eh?"

"Yep. Now about reenacting the scene from the movie..."

He looked over at Izzy when she didn't finish the sentence. She was wearing the necklace now, but the more prominent feature was that she had lifted her shirt and bra up over her breasts, exposing them to her boyfriend.

"Want to paint me, my Zeke?" she asked, winking.

Ezekiel's jaw dropped, pieces of wax grape falling as he stammered and marveled.

* * *

Sneaking out of the fake ship set took a little longer than Ezekiel thought it would. Then again, they did spend a lot of time fooling around in the artist's room. When they were up on the top of the ship, Izzy started looking towards the deck of the ship.

"Something wrong, Dizzy-Izzy?" he asked her.

"There's another part of the movie that I always wanted to reenact," she admitted, "though I'm trying to wonder if we have time."

"Did that ever stop you befur, eh?"

"Nope! I'm going!"

"HEY! What are you doing here?!" Izzy and Ezekiel spun around to see Justin staring at them, not looking too pleased to see them.

"Gack, it's my ex," the redhead shouted, her hands flying over the necklace. Too late, he had seen it.

"Give that over if you please," Justin requested, holding his hand.

Ezekiel stood between him and his girlfriend. "We found it, fair and square."

"You're not even supposed to be here! Don't make me take off my shirt, Zeke."

"He don't swing that way," Izzy squawked. "He prefers _my_ chest, thank you very much."

That was too much information for Justin. He was about to live up to his threat, but someone shouted behind him, startling him.

"It's the psycho hose-beast and the home schooled sexist," Heather shrieked, pointing at said people. "DJ, quick, let's get 'em!"

The gentle brick house nodded, and charged a la football tackle. Justin had not time to react, and was knocked to the side.

"Sorry, Justin," he called back as he headed towards Ezekiel and Izzy, who had turned and bolted towards the deck.

Chris Maclean, watching from afar and sipping a drink, raised an eyebrow. "The chase is on! Better make it more interesting!"

He pressed a button on a remote control he had nearby, and icy hell broke loose. Chucks of ice, freezing water, and a couple penguins were splashed onto the boat, soaking the competitors and weirding out Harold.

"What's a penguin doing here, huh?" he asked.

"_What's a human doing here, huh?_" the equally-stunned penguin thought.

"Run faster! To the front of the deck," Izzy was shouting to Ezekiel.

All of the other competitors were chasing the couple towards the front, despite the ice, water, and penguins (who had also given chase, because they thought fish might be involved). Chris Maclean grinned, and pressed the second button on the remote.

More ice and water were sprayed onto the ship's top, and it caused DJ to slip. The very big guy's momentum and the wet surface of the ship's deck caused him to become a human bowling ball, catching all the other competitors, Ezekiel, Izzy, and the penguins. They slid all the way off the ship, suspended in midair for a few seconds.

"I'm flying, Zeke, I'm flying," Izzy cheered.

They started to plummet.

"We're falling, Izzy, we're falling," Ezekiel exclaimed.

The nine bodies hit the water that encircled the ship set, a large splash forming up a wave and knocking Chef Hatchet, who was nearby watching, over. They eventually resurfaced, gasping for air.

"It's freaking cold," Leshawna chattered, grabbing the nearest thing for support. The thing happened to be Harold, and he was very happy about this.

Chris Maclean walked over to the side of the water, and tsk-tsk'ed the wet competitors. "Izzy, Zeke man," he said, smiling despite his chastising tone, "will you two ever learn?"

"Hey, we just wanted to have a little fun," Izzy giggled. "You may carry on your little contest, we had our fill."

"You had the necklace, you freaking cheaters," Heather shouted, shaking her fist at them.

"Well, I dropped it. I hope that makes you happy. Now go ahead, your fighting can go on and on."

"Not necessary, eh," Ezekiel said, pulling Izzy to him with one arm. He lifted the other arm high in the air, clutching the Gem of Wawanakwa and displaying it for all to see.

"You're gonna die," Heather snarled at the prairie boy. "You're gonna die a young man, smothered by your own pillow in your bed."

Chris was clapping joyously. "Bravo! Ezekiel, seems like you won the day for you and your... ehehe... girlfriend."

"Woohoo, we did it," Izzy shouted, hugging the prairie boy happily. "We're the king and queen of the world!"

Beth and Lindsay also cheered, and Harold gave them a Possum Scout salute in respect. The others didn't look so thrilled.

"So what prize are they getting?" Leshawna grumbled; she hated losing, especially to those really participating.

Chris Maclean clicked his tongue. "Well see, the prize was going to be that the winner or winners were going to pick which two contestants are going to return to the show...

"But since we have Ezekiel and Izzy as the winners, and they're not on the show, that complicates things."

"How?" Beth asked. "Izzy picks Ezekiel, Ezekiel picks Izzy, they're both on the show now."

The host blinked, and then grinned. "Beth, you're so smart! You get a cookie!"

He pulled a cookie from his pocket and tossed it to the brunette farm girl, who happily ate it. "Ezekiel, Izzy," Chris continued to talk, "it's my pleasure to bring you two back to Total! Drama! ACTION!"

"We're on the show again," Izzy whooped, holding Ezekiel close to her. "Well, for me it's again, but it's the first for you, Zeke! You're on the show! Yeeee-haaaaaw!"

Ezekiel was so stunned, he didn't react except to blink his wide eyes. Izzy grabbed his head and kissed him passionately. Some of the others ooo'ed appreciatively.

"Wow," DJ remarked. "You two really are going out!"

"What's this world coming to?" Heather grumbled.

The penguins were squaking and clapping their flippers in celebration.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - And then there were nine.)**

**Izzy** - \singing happily\ "We're on the show again! We're on the show again! We're gonna get rich, ain't pay back a bitch, we're on the show again!"

**Ezekiel** - "Oh wow... I never expected to be on the shoo' a'geen, eh. Bridgette, if you're watching this, we'll have to continue our discussion when I get voted off! Though I think things will be fine, eh!"

**Harold** - "It's so awesome having Ezekiel back. Maybe I can get some tips from him about getting a girlfriend! Not that I need help, gosh! I just want to ask my chocolate princess out before the show's over!"

**Beth** - "Ezekiel and Izzy dating, that's so sweet! Maybe if people that different are in love, Justin and I could be too!"

**Justin** - "I swear, this is going to make my hair frizz, being around Izzy all day. The girl keeps insisting I once dated her, she's worse that Katie, Sadie, or Beth."

**Chris Maclean** - "Maybe this'll be the cure to stop them from sneaking on the show that much. Though I gotta say, that was awesome! You wouldn't believe the ratings it pulled in!"

**Chef Hatchet** - "... I want my money, damn it! Now the show's even longer!"

**Izzy and Ezekiel** - \They are making out again, her wearing his toque. As he kisses her neck, she grins at the camera and waves again.\ "Neener neener neener!"

* * *

The others watched all this, silent in shock. Tyler was the first to speak.

"Well," he said, "guess that means we won't be seeing them here for dinner."

He laughed at his own joke, no one else did. Duncan was fuming, Bridgette was gaping, Eva was growling, and Courtney was eerily silent.

"They snuck on, and now they're part of the show," Duncan shouted, pounding the armrest of his seat. "Damn it, this sucks!"

"Freaking bastard," Eva growled. "Freaking son of a bitch. Freaking motherf-"

"Courtney, are you okay?" Trent asked the CIT. "I thought you'd be furious over this."

"Yeah, I was expecting an eruption from vol-Courtney, if you get my drift," Noah remarked.

"Excuse me," Courtney said, ever-so-politely and firmly. She stood up and walked out of the room.

"Delayed reaction," Noah said, leaning back in his chair. "Mount Courtney will blow when she thinks we're out of earshot."

He winked at Eva, who looked away and shivered uncomfortably. Noah was puzzled by this, she had been distant ever since Izzy had revealed their secret relationship.

"Shouldn't we try to give her a hug or something?" Owen asked.

"Dude, she'll kill you," Geoff said.

"Yeah, so Owen, you go hug her," Tyler suggested, smirking evilly.

* * *

Late at night at the abandoned film lot, Izzy and Ezekiel were stargazing. Ezekiel was pointing out a good deal of the constellations. Izzy was too, but most of hers were created by her.

"And that one right there," she said, pointing up at the night sky, "that one is the tip of the toque sporting the Canadian God of the Prairies. That's you, by the way."

"It's good to be a god, eh," he replied, smiling at her. He had given up at looking at the stars, and was staring at her.

"The stars are up there, my Zeke."

"I'd rather look at your eyes. They're more beautiful."

"But they don't form anything," she pointed out, though she was flushing at the compliment.

"They're the windows to the soul of the most wonderful girl under the stars," he said, then chuckled nervously. "Was that silly to say?"

"It was more corny than a movie theater concession stand, but I loved it."

She draped her arms on his shoulders, and kissed him. Sweet, deep, passionate, the way she did it when she was feeling romantic. They made Ezekiel swoon and moan, he couldn't help it. It surprised him how much she could make his mind spin, despite how much he had kissed her by now.

"I love you, Izzy," he whispered as he stroked her hair.

"I love you, my Zeke," she replied as quietly, caressing his chest.

"_I only hope that one day_," she thought to herself as she leaned her cheek against his shoulder, "_I can find the courage to tell you everything about me._"

They sat there for some time, enjoying being together. Both received a nasty shock as some kind of roar from the city echoed in the night, one that was as powerful as an eruption.

* * *

**End of Part 10.**

* * *

Yes, that roar was Courtney. She's none too happy.

So, what are the demons in Izzy that she's not comfortable talking about yet? How will Ezekiel and Izzy fair on TDA? Will their newly-confessed love endure where other couples have broken up, and will Chris enjoy seeing them in pain if they do? (The answer to the last question is 'yes,' because he is a dick.)

Who was Bridgette's second crush? Due to deduction, it's either Tyler, Harold, or DJ.

Will Owen survive Tyler's reckless wrath? Which of the two highly-destructive boys will Lindsay choose?

Will Beth find out that Justin is just using her? Will Harold get Leshawna back? And just what color are Gwen's nipples?

The answers to all these questions will come eventually! Until then, you're stuck pondering! Bua ha ha, I know and you don't!


	11. But First There's A Short

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - No major amount of sexiness in this chapter, but loads of bad words (no f-bombs, though), loads of drama, and quite a bit of romance.

Also, fans of Total Drama Comeback, keep an eye out for a guest star appearance from TDC!

* * *

**Chapter 11** - And the Girls Have to Go to the Gym to Watch the "Other" Movie

* * *

Ezekiel wanted to go to sleep, to be honest. Unfortunately, there were a couple reasons why he couldn't. One wore glasses, and one was more than twice his size.

"So how is it between you and Izzy?" Harold asked, grinning excitedly.

"Yeah, how is Justin's ex?" DJ added, his grin just as sly as Harold's.

"She's not my ex," Justin exclaimed from his bed. He was lying down, trying to sleep. "How many times do I have to say that?"

Harold laughed. "As long as it's funny to hear you deny it."

"So c'mon, prairie boy," DJ patted Ezekiel's shoulders, "how'd you hook with Izzy? Spill it!"

Ezekiel stared at DJ, slightly disturbed.

"He means to tell all, not to puke or something like that, dude," Harold informed him.

"Oh! Well, it all started when she arrived at Playa des Losers..."

* * *

"Eva was being mean to him," Izzy was explaining to the girls. Beth and Lindsay were listening with bated breath, Leshawna seemed reasonably interested, and Heather looked really annoyed that they were talking.

"So Eva had tied him to a chair, and then she threw him in the pool," Izzy declared, miming the actions. Beth and Lindsay gasped in horror.

"But, wouldn't Ezekiel drown?" Beth asked. "Since he was tied up and stuff!"

"Yep, so I jumped in the pool, and dragged him out!"

"By yourself?" Leshawna asked, raising a dubious eyebrow.

"Well, Bridgette and Geoff helped, but my Zeke said that I could retell the tale as me being the only one to pull him out."

Beth giggled. "You call him, 'my Zeke'? That's _so_ cute!"

Heather scoffed from her bed. Leshawna picked up a pillow and hit her with it.

"So then what happened, Q-Scope?" Lindsay asked her.

"Then, I carried Ezekiel to his room and let him sleep off the horrific experience..."

* * *

"And then the next day, I asked if she wanted to have breakfast with me, eh," Ezekiel was telling the guys. "We must have talk fur hours!"

"And you're still sane?" Justin commented, chuckling.

Harold grabbed a pillow and hit the male model with it. "And then what happened?"

"Well, we went fur a walk around the hotel we were staying at, and we visited a couple places, including," Ezekiel went very red, "an ay'dult movie store."

"You did what?!" DJ exclaimed, his eyes going wide.

"Gosh," Harold breathed.

"It really wasn't what you think it may be, eh," Ezekiel quickly said. "She wanted to shoo' me how things like porn exist, and make girls uncomfortable..."

* * *

"And the gothic lady at the store asked me if I wanted to see some lesbian action in the back!"

Now even Heather was interested. All of the girls' eyes were wide as saucers.

"Damn girl," Leshawna swore. "You mean some porn store clerk was propositioning you?"

"Weird goth people," Heather said.

"What did Ethan do?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, he obviously didn't like the lady asking me that, so he asked that we leave. Then when we were heading back to the hotel, I was fatigued..."

* * *

"She wanted me to carry her, so I did, eh."

Ezekiel thought back to that time, and grinned. "It was really cute, when I think a'boot it. I saw her scars and her belly button. Izzy had the most adorable belly button in the woo'rld, eh."

DJ and Harold were staring.

"Um," Harold managed to say, "can you go back to the lesbian porn clerk, please?"

* * *

"The next day, I was trying to show Ezekiel some dating tips, because I wanted him to try and ask out Bridgette," Izzy said.

"You wanted him to ask out Bridgette?" Beth repeated, shocked.

"No, not Bridgette," Lindsay declared. "... Who's Bridgette?"

"Surfer girl, blond like you, wears a blue hoodie," Leshawna described. "But why, E-Scope? You know she's taken."

"Well, she and Geoff were going through bad times, I thought it was the end. But as it turns out, he used it on me!"

Izzy went behind a small curtain to change. When she came out, she was wearing her green nightgown.

"He asked me out to dinner! I even wore a dress, a green one! It had frogs on it-"

" 'Frogs'? Ewwwww," Lindsay and Beth cried out in unison.

"Well, they were flowers, actually."

* * *

"I was wearing a suit, and she wore this gorgeous green dress! Izzy looked so beautiful..."

Ezekiel swooned aloud. DJ chuckled and said, "Dude, you're one cool cat, asking out Izzy to a public dinner."

"Well, to be honest," Ezekiel chuckled nervously. He was changing into his pajamas, as he spoke. "It did turn 'oot to be a little disastrous, eh."

"How so?" Harold asked. "I mean, I've been on a couple of bad dates before..."

Justin let out a scoffing laugh. The lanky nerd took a deep breath, and then continued. "So, what happened on your date with Izzy? Did she do something crazy?"

"No, she was a real lady. I had a great time talking to her befur..."

* * *

"This really mean couple sat right across from us, and they were such awful, awful people," Izzy spat. "I mean, they were intolerable!"

"Hmm, we can relate to someone like that," Leshawna mused, looking over at Heather. The bald girl scoffed and looked away.

"They kept snapping their fingers and calling our waitress 'hon' and 'toots,'" Izzy continued. "Her name was Erika, by the way, a real sweetheart. I don't know how she could be a waitress, because I'm sure I would kill someone by my first three days."

"Paula is a bit complicated at restaurants," Lindsay admitted, "but we tip the waitress a bit more when she is."

"Well, these creeps were threatening to get her fired, and were insulting her. And it took them more than half an hour to order..."

* * *

"And their extremely long order was extra complicated too, eh," Ezekiel exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air. "They wanted food prepared differently than the restaurant made it, things to the side, they kept sending it back..."

"Dang man, they sounded like a real pain," DJ remarked.

"Yeah, well, when I tried to tell them off after they insulted Izzy and the waitress, the guy hit me, eh. Right on the eye."

Harold winced, then he was distracted by when Ezekiel started to dig through his luggage, which was just a backpack. Chris had had the prairie boy and Izzy's luggage brought over from PdL2, and it had arrived that night.

The items were what piqued Harold's interest. Ezekiel had pulled out a jar of peanut butter, a bag of marshmallows, and a loaf of bread.

"I sent a message to Marabella, asking to put these things in my backpack and in Izzy's suitcase, eh," Ezekiel said to them. "I wanted to make fluffernutters fur you all, eh."

" 'Fluffernutter'?" DJ repeated.

* * *

" 'Fluffernutter'?" Leshawna repeated.

"Yes! This must be Ezekiel's doing," Izzy cried out, a wild smile on her face. "Oh, I love that man! Thinking about fluffernutter makes me think of the wonderful kisses we've had."

"You two kissed over fluffernutter?" Beth asked.

"Well, our first kiss was after that wild fight at the restaurant. Then we kissed after we saved Snakey... no wait, we didn't because we were interrupted by Courtney...

"But we did have a romantic night at the dance we held at Playa des Losers 2!"

"Wow, you had a dance?" Beth asked. "How was that?"

"Hot," Izzy remarked, winking.

* * *

"Really, really hot," Ezekiel said, blushing fervently when he remembered that night of making out.

Harold and DJ hummed in acknowledgment, their mouths stuffed full of fluffernutter. Justin, who had been trying to resist the lure of the strange and new treat, caved in and started making himself one.

"So," the model said as he spread peanut butter on a slice of bread, "was this all before or after you snuck on the set during the zombie challenge?"

"Befur, eh. We saw this really bad zombie movie, so Izzy wanted to experience some real zombie action, and we came here. After that, that's when I made her some fluffernutter..."

* * *

"He was such a gentleman, making me my favorite treat! I gave him a little Izzy sweetness as a way of repaying him."

As Izzy giggled, Beth and Leshawna were eating fluffernutter too. Lindsay was staring at it like if she were trying to decide if it was safe or not to eat.

"This'll go right to my hips, I know it," she whined.

"More cushion for the pushin'," Izzy remarked as she chomped on her own fluffernutter.

Lindsay looked confused. Heather, caving in, was making a fluffernutter, and she scoffed at the blond bombshell. "She means it's better to have meat on your bones."

She still looked confused. Leshawna sighed, and rubbed her temple. "Lindsay, we mean that when you're having sex and the guy's hips are pushing against yours, it's better to be a bit plumper where you're hitting skins."

Lindsay blanched, looking more startled than ever before. The blond girl stared at the fluffernutter sandwich, and then gingerly took a bite. Her eyes finished widening, and she began wolfing it down like a starving woman.

"Izzy thought you would love it," Izzy said, giggling. "So, after the second time we snuck on the set, we went on a triple date. It was my Zeke and I, Geoff and Bridgette, and Cody and Gwen."

Leshawna almost choked on her fluffernutter. "My girl's seeing Cody?"

Heather scoffed. "She must really be desperate. Or sad, or looking for an easy-"

The large sister smeared the queen bee's fluffernutter in her face.

* * *

"I still doo'nt knoo' how it happened, but the ferris wheel threw us here during our third date, eh," Ezekiel mused. "Leshawna found us, and she won the contest because of it."

"Yeah, we voted off Owen," Justin said, in-between bites of his fluffernutter, "we really just couldn't stand his smell anymore."

"It is much easier to breathe in the trailer," DJ admitted.

"So, after some time together," Ezekiel said, carefully hiding a mild blush as he remembered his time with Izzy in the hot tub, "I wanted to cheer her up, and I convinced her to sneak on the set this time."

"_You_ convinced her?" Harold repeated.

"Wild," DJ added, chuckling.

Justin shrugged. "Well, that's cool, I guess. But what are you going to do since this game is now a free-for-all?"

"Yeah man, you think that Heather will try to break you two up?" DJ asked.

"_If she doesn't, I may have to,_" Justin thought.

"Naw, I doubt she'd try that," Harold said, licking his peanut butter coated fingers.

"No way she could, eh," Ezekiel agreed, grinning happily, "because I loved Izzy."

* * *

"I love my Zeke," Izzy proudly stated, "and one of us could win this contest.

"And no one," she said, looking directly at Heather, "will be separating us."

Heather was finishing wiping the peanut butter off her face, and she rolled her eyes at Izzy. "Whatever. This time around, I'm going to win. I'm getting that million dollars."

"Not on my watch," Leshawna remarked.

"Yeah Heather, don't ever forget that you've made a lot of enemies," Beth shot at her former ally. "If we get the chance, you are so off."

"Totally," Lindsay agreed.

"I just want to know what the next challenge will be," Izzy remarked, giggling as she scarfed down the rest of her fluffernutter. "Because Ezekiel and I will ace it, I know we will."

* * *

At Playa des Losers 2, Courtney was heaving mad every waking moment. Manual ran for his life whenever she was near, Marabella would freeze up, and Sakaki silently prayed.

Duncan was also too afraid to get near her, her brooding too intense. The only way she could vent or redirect her anger was talking to Bridgette, or deal with the feud between Tyler and Owen.

Courtney's venting at Bridgette, unknown to the CIT, was causing the surfer girl a lot of stress. Hearing Courtney chew out Izzy and especially Ezekiel was frustrating her, and there was the fact that Duncan was becoming more mean since he couldn't be with his girlfriend.

Bridgette wanted to scream, but Tyler was doing enough of that for her. The jock was furious at Owen, and he was eager to start a fight; however, Owen was more willing to do a marathon than get into a fight.

"Tyler, you cannot fight him, he doesn't want to," Courtney chastised him.

"He was kissing my girlfriend as much as he could," Tyler snarled.

"Um, it was always in the heat of the moment," Owen admitted. This made Tyler snarl more.

"Look, you two," the brunette CIT continued to referee the argument, "when Lindsay gets voted off, discuss this with her. Until then, just avoid each other."

"My girl Lindsay ain't gonna get voted off," Tyler said as he walked off. "She can win this whole thing." Courtney rolled her eyes and walked off.

Bridgette, very near the end of her patience, wound up talking to Gwen whenever she could. The goth girl was very happy with her new boyfriend, and seeing her, especially her now that the surfer girl thought about it, relaxed her.

"Don't you have incense candles or something?" Gwen asked.

"Geoff hates the smell," she said, sighing. "He moans whenever he's in my room, like if I was a chain smoker and the smell was obvious."

"Ouch."

"Yeah. So, um, how is it going between you and Cody?" Bridgette asked, forming a smile on her face. "I noticed him kissing you on the cheek the other day."

Gwen flushed a little, very obvious on her pale cheeks. "Well, yeah, it's actually going much better than I thought it would. I have to admit, at first I thought I would tire of him rather quickly, but I'm not!

"He has a deeper love for art than I thought he would. He actually knows famous artists and paintings, and not just the ones named after the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."

Bridgette laughed. "That's great! It's nice to know that there is a smart guy underneath the horn dog exterior I first saw."

Now it was Gwen's turn to laugh. "Oh yes, that eager side of him. He does enjoy kissing me and holding me, but you know what? It's actually very sweet. Just that..."

She blushed some more and looked at Bridgette with a shy smile. "Just that he loves being with me so much, feeling wanted and loved. Cody really makes me feel special."

Bridgette smiled, clasping her hands. "I love that feeling. When Geoff looks me in the eye and takes me in his arms, I feel like my spirit can fly."

"And then you two make out."

"Um, yep," Bridgette said with a blush. "I never knew I was that kind of physical girl. I never knew I would enjoy making out so much."

"Well, I might be as bad as you, if it's any comfort."

The surfer's jaw dropped. "No way! You and Cody?"

"A few times, yes," Gwen admitted. "There was one time when he was being so cute and charming, if you can believe that, I just... wow, I had to have him. I pulled him into the nearest room and I couldn't stop kissing him.

"Turned out to be a janitor's closet. We realized this when one of the staff members came in on us, and he was asking us questions in Russian."

Bridgette laughed, slapping her knee. "That's great! You two are getting along perfectly, kind of like Izzy and Zeke."

"Yeah, they really surprised me when I knew they were dating. It really didn't seem like those two, of all the people here, would start dating."

"Me neither. You... you know I had a grudge over poor Zeke, back during TDI," Bridgette said, looking down in shame. "I really wish I had known sooner what a nice guy he was."

"Well, he is with Izzy on TDA. I just hope Chris doesn't try to screw up their relationship."

"If he tries to cross Izzy, he'll wind up in the hospital."

* * *

Chris obviously wanted to cross Izzy, but it wasn't going to work.

Aside from a single lover's tiff over something meaningless, Ezekiel and Izzy seemed quite content with competing against each other.

Harold summed it up, since he felt the same about him and Leshawna. "Fates have determined we are to trial our hearts by tugging at them."

Leshawna was confused by this, so Harold had to simplify it. "Once you have competed against each other, you can see if you are truly in love."

"Stringbean, you crazy."

Leshawna raised an eyebrow at Izzy, who had spoken up. "You trying out my slang, crazy girl?"

"My name's E-Scope."

"But you let Ezekiel call you Izzy," Harold pointed out.

"He's my lover, you guys aren't."

While the others felt strange with this comment, Harold nodded wistfully.

Chris Maclean had gathered the nine contestants at the trailer grounds. The host looked delighted with the next challenge, disgusted with Izzy and Ezekiel.

Some would wonder what made the host the jerk that he was, that he was secretly irked to see young people so happy with each other, or just happy. Why did he enjoy seeing them sad, angry, in pain, and/or frustrated?

Simply put, he was an asshole. Expanded on that thought, he grew up enjoying hurting people.

"Your first real, free-for-all challenge is going to be the type of movie genre that I know you all will hate more than anything," he remarked, grinning and rubbing his hands.

The nine exchanged glances, trying to think of what type of movie that none of them would like.

"An educational short!"

Everyone who had been to public school let out a pained groan. Ezekiel cocked his head in confusion.

"What's an educational short, eh?" he asked Izzy.

"That'd be you," she replied, grinning wickedly. "An educated shortie."

She kissed his cheek. He blushed. The other contestants rolled their eyes. Chris wanted to see bamboo splinters under their fingernails to make up for seeing them happy (he really was an asshole).

"You all are going to make an educational short, and try to make it informative, interesting, and unique," Chris said, grinning. "I recommend not helping others, since this is now a free-for-all."

"But we can still?" Beth asked.

"Yeah, sure, it'll help bring up the trust and friendship, only for it to come crashing down harder on you when you vote those you said you cared about off. Which will make most awesome TV."

He laughed. The others fumed.

* * *

**(Dressing Room Cam - An uneducated shortie.)**

**Harold** - "What an asshole."

**Ezekiel** - "What a dickweed."

**DJ** - "What a meanie face."

**Heather** - "What a prick."

**Leshawna** - "What a jerk-off."

**Beth** - "What a douche bag."

**Lindsay** - "What a shit head."

**Justin** - "What a bastard."

**Izzy** - "Izzy thinks she'll shave his hair off when he's asleep. And not just the hair on his head, the little bitch." \She laughs sinisterly.\

* * *

"The short films will be judged by me, and all those that make the cut will gain immunity," the host said. "Those who don't run the risk of being voted off. Now begin!"

The making of the educational shorts went very well for the most part. Izzy and Ezekiel helped each other, the latter needing far more help. ("They actually make movies a'boot sex that kids are mandatory required to see?" he had asked, flabbergasted. "Man, I'm really glad I was home schooled, eh.")

Beth helped Justin, who was all too glad to get an artistic flare to his without having to do the work. Beth also wanted to help Lindsay, but the blond was too distracted over something she was keeping secret. Harold wanted to help Leshawna, but she wouldn't have any of it.

"This is a free-for-all, stringbean," she snapped at him. "I ain't taking any charity, I'm winning this contest!"

"But I just want to help you, my chocolate goddess!"

Leshawna wouldn't let him, however much he insisted. Heather, on the other hand, was allowing DJ to help her. She didn't know why he was helping her so much, but she wasn't about to turn down the only person willing to be in an alliance with her.

Izzy and Ezekiel were ready first, but the deadline wasn't for a couple hours. So they headed off to be alone off the set, where the cameras couldn't see them. Though the redhead was a daredevil, she did like having alone time with her boyfriend.

Ezekiel kissed her neck, and she pulled her head back so that he had more area to cover. She giggled a lot, especially when he licked at her throat.

"You're getting better, my Zeke," she complimented him.

"Thank you very much, eh. I do try."

"I know. You know, they should have romantic classes in high school, how to really make your partner feel good."

"But wouldn't that mean students have to practice on each other?"

"Yep! They'll all fight for who gets the hottest girl, it'd be so great!"

"What a'boot the girl who has to practice with the mean, smelly creep, eh?"

"Oh yeah, that wouldn't be fun."

They were about to kiss some more when Beth came by. She saw them stuck in lip-lock, and couldn't help but giggle.

"Wow, you two really are dating," she cooed.

"Why do people keep saying that, eh?" Ezekiel asked Izzy.

"Ezekiel, you have a phone call," Beth said, jerking her thumb back at the film lot.

"Really? Who could be calling me, eh?"

Ezekiel and Izzy headed back to the trailer lot, and the prairie boy headed towards the cafeteria tent, where the phones were located. Izzy went to follow, but was caught by Chef Hatchet.

"Let me go, I wanna know who he's talking to," she demanded as he dragged her towards the trailers.

"That's why I'm taking you over here, psycho girl."

"Oh, you'll resent calling me that; you're lucky you're already bald."

Chef Hatchet led her to where the other seven campers and Chris Maclean were gathered, all around an electronic device with a couple speakers hooked up to it.

"This doesn't feel moral at all," DJ whimpered, "listening in on Zeke's conversation."

"And yet you're still here," Heather pointed out.

There was a crackling of the phone being picked up, then the curious tone of Ezekiel. "Hello?"

"Ezekiel," the voice of a grown woman startled most of those listening in.

"Mom?" Ezekiel asked, startled like them.

"Yes, it's me. You big goof, why didn't you tell us you had a girlfriend, eh?"

Her accent was as thick as his, and despite her interrogative words, she sounded delighted. Izzy couldn't help but think, "_Hey, this could be my mother-in-law._"

"Um, I, um, furgot-" Ezekiel started but was cut off.

"You 'furgot'? How could you furget, you're kissing her on live TV, eh!"

Ezekiel swallowed. "No, um, I furgot our phone number."

"Pardon?"

"Well, I never call home since I'm always there, and I furgot what it was when I left to be on the show, eh."

Silence, then laughter. "Oh, my Zeke," she said in-between chuckles.

"_GAH! She calls her that too?_" Izzy thought, panicking.

"That's what Izzy calls me, you knoo'," Ezekiel said then. Izzy could almost hear him blush. "I'm... I'm soo'ry mom, I would have told you if I could call you, eh."

"So, what's she like, eh?" his mom asked. "Is she really as wild as she is on the show? I'm sure you all get a little excited with a camera in your face, eh."

"Well, she is pretty wild. But there's a whole side of her that the camera doesn't pick up, mom."

"Doo'nt be so defensive, Ezekiel. I just want to knoo' moo'r a'boot her, eh."

"Whoa, she sounds a lot like him, doesn't she?" Leshawna remarked aloud. Izzy desperately shushed her.

"She's one of the smartest people I knoo', eh," Ezekiel said, swooning a little. "Well, I doo'nt knoo' too many people, but she's really brilliant, and really unique. She's helped me learn a lot a'boot the real world.

"Izzy's helped me, she was the first person to be friends with me, who actually talked to me after I blew the first day of TDI," he said, sighing a little at the memory. "I really love her, mom, she's changed me."

Lindsay and Beth let out long 'aww's,' and Izzy was turning bright red. When Chris let out a disbelieving scoff, Leshawna hit him upside the head.

"Wow. Will I still knoo' my son when he comes home?" his mother asked. "How long have you knoo'n her, Zeke?"

"A'boot... almost three weeks now. I mean, doo'nt woo'ry, we're not rushing things, eh."

"Really, hon? Because you knoo', if you two do, um," his mother was starting to pause nervously, "if you two do want to, you knoo', get intimate, please promise me you'll use protection."

Several of the contestants burst out laughing, especially when Ezekiel began to stammer, panicked. "Mom, no, it's not that far," he shouted, "I really respect her, eh! I wouldn't ask her to go that far after only a'boot three weeks!"

"I wasn't accusing you, hon. I guess it's your father's fault, eh."

"What? What?! Why?" Ezekiel's voice plummeted, sounding rejected. "He doesn't approve?"

"No, no, he actually was much moo'r fur it than I was. He was so woo'ried, because all the boys and girls were pairing up, he thought you might have been stuck with Heather."

All those listening in and Ezekiel burst out laughing, leaving Heather fuming.

"You knoo', we stopped watching the shoo' when they voted you off, eh," Ezekiel's mother continued. "Did I ever tell you that?"

"I... I doo'nt think you did. Why?"

" 'Why?' They voted you off! You think we'd watch a show full of brats who kicked our son off first?"

"Mom, I've made friends with some of them now."

"Have you? That's great! I hope you're not friends with that Heather girl, she's a little bi... oh, soo'ry, almost swore there."

"Wow, mom, I never knew you could swear, eh."

"You'd be surprised. Son, I knoo' that," her voice cracked a little, "your father and I didn't prepare you enough for the real world. It still surprised me that you thought that a'boot girls, I wondered what I had done wrong, eh."

"You didn't do anything wrong, mother," he replied, his voice cracking a little too. "I goofed up. But I've learned a lot, and it's mostly thanks to Izzy."

"I really want to meet this girl. She is a bit eccentric, is she really wanted by the RCMP?"

"Um, I'm not sure, to be honest. If she was, you would think they'd come arrest her, since she's on live TV."

"True that. Well, hon, I doo'nt want to take up too much of your time, since you're in a challenge. Just promise me that when this contest is over, you'll bring Izzy over here; your father and I want to meet her!"

"You promise to be nice, eh?"

"Of course, hon. She looks like she could kick your father's butt."

"Oh, well then, I'll tell her to be nice too."

* * *

Ezekiel was wondering everyone was staring at him as the other contestants finished up their educational short movies. Izzy was also cuddling him affectionately, which wasn't new, but her waving at the camera every now and then was.

When it came time to judge, Ezekiel was nervous as hell. After all, he had been kicked off first on TDA, he was almost certain he'd be kicked off TDA as soon as he got on. This, however, was not the case.

His movie on etiquette and being polite to women was making Chris laugh the whole way through, which struck Ezekiel as very weird since it wasn't supposed to be humor. When the host told him he had passed, he added, "Who am I to argue, huh? You've got a girlfriend." Izzy also passed, with her educational short about a great deal of things on what not to do.

"Don't stab a frozen can of soda," she explained to the camera, then stabbed a frozen can of soda with an ice pick while wearing safety glass. The can burst, sending bits of aluminum and chucks of frozen soda all over.

"Don't try to stop a chain saw's moving blades with your hands," she said, then held up her hands. Though it was a make-up job, the sight of her fake, mutilated hands was horrifying.

"Don't watch movies by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, please." She dropped a DVD of 'Meet the Spartans' on the ground, and hit it repeatedly with a sledgehammer.

"When writing fanfiction about us here on TDI and TDA, please learn to spell Ezekiel's name right," she said as she held up a poster that said, "Ezekiel, 'I' before 'E', Eze as pie."

"And most of all, never, under any circumstances, shake a soda machine to get your drink, even if it means being out a dollar."

She pointed to Chef Hatchet, who was doing that just now, and the large soda machine fell on the large man.

"The last one was coincidence," Izzy admitted, but Chris was perfectly okay with that.

Most of the others did well. Leshawna did one about staying in school, referring to how many teens lead lives of crime and/or substance abuse if they drop out too soon. DJ did one about preventing cruelty to animals, and kept showing Bunny, saying, "Is this the kind of creature you want to hurt?"

Justin did one about being drug-free. He ripped off his shirt and explained how he couldn't be gorgeous if drugs wrecked his gorgeous body. He explained how his teeth and breath were great without drugs. He went on for a little, but everyone, even the males, were quite convinced.

"Man, if only they showed this around the 1960's," Harold remarked. "The War on Drugs would never have started, drugs would have lost."

Heather won with a movie about a short history on fashion; most of the contestants were bored, but Chris took a keen interest to what made men hot throughout the ages. Harold also won, his movie on how to beat box; after his film was over, everyone was attempting it.

Lindsay and Beth were the only losers. Lindsay's film about make-up failed to catch Chris's attention at all, and Beth's movie about proper dental care was shoddy because she had been so busy helping Justin and Lindsay.

"Told you that helping others isn't the way to go," Chris Maclean chastised her. "Well then people, vote for who goes next: Lindsay or Beth."

* * *

**(Dressing Room Cam - Who do we vote for? Hmmm.)**

**Ezekiel** - "I'm not the first one off? I'm not gonna be the first one off! WOOHOO!"

**Heather** - "Man, which of those two is harder to tolerate, the blond bimbo or the brunette guys wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole?"

**Justin** - "Lindsay, though she's much easier to look at, has lost her usefulness, what with her concerned over her love life."

**Izzy** - "I'm gonna have to say Lindsay, because that girl needs to go and chose between ol' Owen and Tyler. Besides, she's from a rich family, she don't need a million."

**Groucho the Duck** - \He is quacking, with English subtitles on.\ "I think I made a wrong turn at Wawanakwa. Where the hell am I?" \He pulls out a map.\ "I never should have asked that seagull for directions, eh!"

* * *

The awards ceremony was rather short, since everyone but the two girls at risk received trophies. Lindsay and Beth were holding hands in fear, both wanting desperately to get that last Gilded Chris, but sorrowful that their closest friend would be voted off as a result.

Beth got the last award. She at first cheered, then she sobbed and hugged Lindsay.

"Sorry, beautiful," Chris said sympathetically, taking a quick gander at her cleavage. "Looks like it's time for you to go."

"Now I'll never see France," Lindsay whimpered when she stood up.

"I'll take you there if I win," Beth promised.

This was too emotional for Lindsay, and she hugged her short friend, sobbing. After a good cry, she finally managed to let go of Beth and make her way towards the Lame-o-Sine.

"Bye, Beth," she called out. "Justin, bye bye! Harry, good luck with Lewanda, and all of you, kick Heather's butt for me again!"

"Will do, girlfriend," Leshawna called back, winking.

Lindsay almost made it to the Lame-o-Sine before someone unexpected stopped her. It was Ezekiel, holding two Gilded Chris awards.

"That's really sweet of you, Freeza," she said, smiling at him, "but I lost, so I don't think two awards will make up for it. Err, will it?"

"Actually, Izzy and I want you to do us a favor?" Ezekiel said, handing them to her. "Could you give these to..."

He whispered the names in her ear, as well as a little message. Lindsay nodded. "But, I'm not the best at names, Hikeeba,"she admitted, "what will I do if I forget?"

"Here's what I do, eh," Ezekiel took a pen out of his jacket pocket and wrote on the back of Lindsay's hand the names of the two people.

"Ohhhhhhhh," Lindsay acknowledged, looking very pleased. "I should do that, until I remember everyone's names."

"You'll learn, eh. You've got some of them doo'n, like Beth, Heather, Owen, and Tyler."

"Owen and Tyler," she repeated, looking down in sorrow. "I don't know what I'm going to do when I see them again, Zenigame." **[1]**

"What do you mean, eh?"

"I... I'm going to have to choose," she said, wringing her hands. "Tyler's been my boyfriend for some time, but Owen's really sweet and nice to me. What should I do?"

"I really doo'nt knoo' how to choose between two people," he admitted, scratching under his toque, "but I can tell you that you should follow what your heart says. I used to think that saying was corny, but when I started to become interested in Izzy, I could feel something deep down urging me to continue seeing her."

"That's so romantic," Lindsay cooed. "I'm glad your mother approves of her!"

Ezekiel was confused for a second, then he gasped. Lindsay bit her lip.

"Um, oops," she squeaked, "I wasn't supposed to tell you that we listened in on your phone conversation, was I?"

* * *

"And now, everyone, I'd like to present you all with another educational short!"

Ezekiel had brought all the other contestants into the cafeteria camp, back into the kitchen. "I'd like to show you all how to make a really great, chocolate treat!"

He had set his Gilded Chris award in the center of a cooking plate, having stripped it of its gold-plated wrapping. The chocolate looked rather tempting.

"See, I made this pie crust befur you all got here, and I added some ingredients in the center befur I add the chocolate, eh," Ezekiel instructed. He then held up something rather intimidating.

"What you got a blow torch for, prairie boy?" Leshawna asked, raising her eyebrows in concern.

"You've been spending way too much time with Izzy," Justin muttered.

"E-Scope," Izzy snapped at her ex, then smiled at Ezekiel. "Go on, my Zeke."

"Blow torches can be used in some cooking cases, Leshawna," Ezekiel informed her. "It's used for direct, quick heating; I'd knoo', I've bin taught this in home economics."

"Wow, they teach you how to use a blow torch in that class?" Izzy chirped. "I cannot wait to meet your parents!"

Ezekiel blushed, then held up the blow torch in a 'cool' pose. "Who here wants to see Chris get flambéed?"

The contestants all cheered.

"Fry that son of a bitch," Heather shouted, grinning.

"Burninate with extreme prejudice," Harold agreed.

"Flame on," Izzy roared.

Ezekiel did so, using the blow torch to melt the chocolate Chris (head first) down into the bowl. After stirring the melted chocolate, he set it in the oven and grinned at the others.

"It'll be ready in a'boot thirty minutes," he said. "Hope you all like Melted Chris Ego!"

Izzy glomped him, almost knocking him down. "Izzy loves eating the sad remains of a sad has-been! Me love you long time, my Zeke!"

"Dang girl," Leshawna remarked, "you two really are into each other, aren't you?"

"Gee, haven't heard that one befur, eh."

* * *

When Lindsay arrived at Playa des Losers, she was expecting some sort of welcoming. Strangely enough, there was none. She looked around the pool area, carrying the two Gilded Chris awards in her hands.

"Hello?" she called out. "Is anyone there? Owen? Tyler? Greta? Eevee? Gungan? Raye? Colby? McCloud?" **[2]**

Lindsay heard some crashing inside the hotel, and hurried in. What she saw shocked her.

Tyler was being held back by Eva and Duncan, while Owen was hiding behind Courtney. The others were watching, looking nervous or frustrated.

"Tyler, how many times do I have to repeat myself?" Courtney shouted at the jock. "You will control your temper!"

"I've had enough of him trying to hit on my girlfriend," Tyler shouted, "and you're not the boss of me, Courtney!"

Duncan twisted his arm, and the jock wailed in pain. Lindsay winced.

"I want you two to _try_ and act like civilized human beings when Lindsay gets here," Courtney ordered them. "You will discuss with her, and make it someplace else! We all are quite fed up with these constant fights."

"Not to take sides," Katie said, "but Owen isn't ever fighting."

"He's usually hiding, like right now," Sadie agreed.

"You two keep fighting like this," Gwen muttered, "and Lindsay will end up seeing, I dunno, Harold."

"Who's Harold?" Lindsay asked.

Everyone was startled, and looked over at the confused blond. "Do I know him well?" she continued to ask. "Would he like my parents?"

"Oh great, she's here," Eva grumbled as she let go of Tyler. "I thought I felt the average IQ in this room plummet."

Tyler shook his fist at the fitness buff before approaching Lindsay. "It's so great to see you again, babe," he declared, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"It's great to see you again too, Tyler," she said, smiling at him.

"Hi, Lindsay," Owen called out in a little voice, giving her a small voice. He flinched as Tyler glared at him.

"Hi, Owen," she cheerfully called out to him.

"Go to another room with this," Courtney shouted. "Resolve it, or come to some conclusion, just stop fighting over it!"

"But wait," Lindsay protested, "I have to give something to, um..."

She looked at the back of her hand, "Bridgette and Geoff!"

The party animal and the surfer girl looked surprised, and were even more shocked when Lindsay handed them a Guilded Chris each.

"Dazed and Dizzy wanted you two to have one," Lindsay explained, "since you never got one. He also said something about how you two helped them get together, and it was a thank you.

"Did you two hook those two up?" she asked as she smiled at them. "It's hard to believe at times, but they really are dating!"

"Oh my God...," Bridgette whispered, staring at the Guilded Chris award. "Zeke and Izzy really got us one..."

Her eyes started to water up. "This is one of the nicest things someone's done for me. Geoff, isn't it so swee-"

She was cut off when her boyfriend grabbed her in a hug, crying loudly. "I've never been more touched in my life," he bawled, great big tears rolling down his eyes.

"Wow, Left, you really like it? That's great!" Lindsay remarked before heading off with Tyler and Owen.

Courtney stared at Geoff and Bridgette, in complete disbelief. "Ezekiel and Izzy did that?" she asked herself.

"Be nicer if they sent you one, princess," Duncan said, chuckling. "Man, look at Geoff cry. Lucky for him there are no cameras here."

Courtney rubbed her arm, and walked off while keeping a direct stare at the floor. Duncan watched her, very confused by his girlfriend's actions.

"What's up with her?" he asked aloud.

His question fell to deaf ears. Eva and Noah had long since left the scene, Cody and Gwen were chatting with Trent, Katie and Sadie had left to spy on the love triangle, and Geoff and Bridgette were still hugging.

"What's up with everyone?" Duncan grumbled to himself. "This place is a drama nightmare."

* * *

Izzy and Ezekiel were cuddling underneath the stars again the night of the educational shorts contest. Izzy was finishing her slice of Melted Chris ego pie, and leaving chocolate kisses on her boyfriend's face and neck.

"Stop it, Izzy, I'm gonna need a shower afterwards, eh," he giggled as she continued her messy assault.

"Hey, can I join?" she asked slyly. She giggled when he turned very red, and she added, "Wow, you could reheat the chocolate on your face!"

"I still cannot believe you all listened in on my conversation with my mother," he grumbled, looking down at the ground. "In fact, the whole world listened in on it!"

"Yay, now the whole world has heard her approval," Izzy cheered, holding her boyfriend close. "I want to meet your mom and dad as soon as possible, Zeke! Right after the show is over, let's fly over to the prairie, and I'll meet your parents!"

"But what a'boot your family, eh?"

"Aw, I'm sure they won't mind."

"Izzy, really? You won't have seen them fur a'boot three and a half months, eh. Doo'nt you want to see them?"

"I'm much more anxious to meet your parents. My family can wait, they usually like having me out of the house."

Ezekiel could sense something in her voice that made him worry. He could sense she was hurting, but he couldn't tell what. It couldn't be something about her family, could it?

"Izzy," he started to say, taking her hands into his. She wrung them out and cupped his face.

"I don't want to talk about family any more," she whispered, anxious. "I just want to celebrate with you, my Zeke."

She kissed him, so earnest that it overwhelmed him. He reached up to stroke her cheek, and felt something wet: a tear had spilled from her eye.

"Izzy," he tried again, but she continued to kiss him, wrapping her arms around him and holding him close. It was an overpowering need for him, a desire to be wanted by him, that he couldn't fight it.

He was kissing her back, holding her close to him, but deep down, his heart was throbbing in pain. Ezekiel could sense she was in pain, and he wanted more than anything to know why.

"_My Izzy,_" was part of his last thoughts before Izzy's loving kisses drowned out sentient thought, "_why can't you be honest with me? I love you, and I cannot stand this feeling that you're in pain._"

* * *

Lindsay stood before Tyler and Owen, wringing her hands nervously.

"Can you two," she started to ask, very cautious with her choice with her choice of words, "can you please give me a bit of time?"

Owen nodded, but Tyler looked hurt; he had been so sure that Lindsay would pick him, that her hesitation greatly startled him.

"I... I just need a little more time," Lindsay admitted. "I care about you two very much, and I don't think I can make a decision just now. I'll have one soon, I promise..."

"Take your time, Lindsay," Owen told her. "I mean, we can wait as long you need to settle this out. Right, Tyler?"

He asked with all sincerity, but to the jock, Owen's words were more razor blades cutting at the heart. "Sure," Tyler managed to croak out, "sure, that's fine."

"Thank you both so much," she said, patting their shoulder each. "I love you both, and I just wish this had been under better circulation."

Both guys would have tried to figure out what this really meant, but their minds were far too distracted. After small good-byes, Lindsay went up to her room, Tyler to his, and Owen to the cafeteria.

Owen sat down at a table and began to eat. He always ate when he was upset, and he was very upset right now. Lindsay meant a great deal to him, more than just fun bags that Izzy suggested he squeeze. The blond girl listened when he talked, understood how he felt, and showed more affection than he had received from any other girl. He didn't want to lose that, or Lindsay.

Tyler sat on his bed, his face in his hands. Watching Lindsay drift away from him and towards Owen had been killing him, and now seeing her hesitation in real life was a real stab in the chest. Added with the facts that his mom was now being a bimbo on national TV and that most everyone at the plaza was siding with Owen, he had never felt so alone and upset. He wanted his sisters, his dad, his friend Ezekiel, but he didn't have any of that; he just wanted to cry, and he ended up doing that.

Lindsay also was crying. She never imagined being caught in this situation, because love triangles always looked foolish to her; surely it would be easy to pick between two. It wasn't here, and it was killing her deep down. Her heart almost literally felt like it was being pulled in two, and though she was slow on the uptake on many things, this had all settled in, and hard.

Bridgette was the only other person in the hotel that night that was crying. She rested her Guilded Chris award against her forehead, holding it tenderly in her hands. The irony she was crying over a statue of Chris was almost lost to her, since the cruelest man she ever knew was now her symbol for friendship and love.

"Zeke," she whispered to herself, "Izzy... thank you both so much."

* * *

**End of Part 11.**

* * *

I hope my Total Drama Comeback fans appreciated Groucho the Duck's cameo!

If you are finding the TDA scenes to be rushed, it's because I want to focus on the romance, friendships, and drama, not on the show. The show is more important in my other stories, but not here.

**[1]** - Freeza is a villain in the Dragonball Z series. "Hikeeba" is the battle cry of a klutzy soldier on one of the episodes in MST3K; they use it as a running joke in many episodes to follow. Zenigame is the Japanese name for Squirtle, the tiny turtle Pokémon.

**[2]** - Greta is Lindsay's common "wrong" name for Gwen. Eevee, another Pokémon, is a wrong name for Eva. Gungan, a Star Wars race, is a wrong name for Duncan. Raye, the name of a character Courtney's voice actress has done (Sailor Mars), is a wrong name for Courtney. Colby is the wrong name JoeMerl used for Cody in "Crossing the Line." McCloud is a running gag in MST3K, where always when people are being called out, Crow finishes the list of names with a cry of this name.

I promise more sexiness and drama in the next chapter! And WOOHOO, I made the 100K mark! I now have two stories up there!


	12. The Loving Before the Storm

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - There's going to be a lot of mature scenes at the beginning, mostly because there wouldn't be much of it for some time after this chapter. Gotta warn you, this all is a lot more heavy. And don't worry, skipping over them won't keep you locked out of the plot.

Also, the language gets really bad in some places, a couple people are going to drop the f-bomb a couple times. Sorry.

And may I restate how much I hate how these characters get more action that me? \sulks\

* * *

**Chapter 12** - An Angst/Drama/Family/Friendship/Humor/Hurt/Comfort/Mystery/Romance/Suspense Genre Chapter

* * *

It was late at night. Love was in the air.

Bridgette and Geoff, both of whom were in much higher spirits ever since they received the Guild Chris awards as presents, were making out with all the passion they had, the kind of passion that drove them to kiss instead of compete.

Duncan and Courtney were having sex, though the CIT was a little bit more emotional. It surprised the punk when tears came to her eyes; he thought it was because he was doing better than normal, but it was really because she was thinking how much these nights of passion meant to her, and them as a couple.

Noah and Eva were also getting hot and heavy, but not quite having sex. Noah had once explained to her that he wanted to wait a little longer (in reality, he was afraid she might break his pelvis bone).

Cody and Gwen were making out, their kisses as fervent and wet as Bridgette and Geoff's. The goth girl was a little more aggressive than Cody or even she thought she could be. She had taken off Cody's shirt and was using her fingers and mouth on his chest lovingly. The tech-geek wondered if he should go for her top too, but Gwen's kisses and caresses were driving him out of his mind.

Izzy and Ezekiel were making out in a shower stall. With cameras all over the Total Drama Action lot, the showers were the only place without a prying camera. Izzy had said something about how this was a little like the "mile-high club," but Ezekiel had no idea what that meant.

"Zeke," she said in-between kisses, "you think we have any chance of winning this contest?"

The prairie boy hummed in thought as he stroked her sides, causing her to giggle. "I think you have a strong chance, Izzy, you have the skills and fitness to do this."

"What about you? You're so smart!"

"Well, unfortunately, this isn't a game shoo', and I haven't seen Chris do one challenge based on intelligence."

She nodded and shrugged. "You might find out you're actually much tougher than you think. You could have the eye of the tiger! I once hunted a tiger, you know."

"A wild one?"

"Actually no, it was one that escaped from the zoo. I tracked it down after it got out, and I tied it up, then gave it to the proper authorities! They were so pleased, they decided not to press charges."

"Why would they want to press charges if...," he trailed off, then smirked at her. "Were you the one who let it 'oot?"

"You're really getting to know me, my Zeke!"

Izzy kissed his cheek. "You know, I should do something really nice for you."

"You and I making 'oot is already incredible. I never knew kissing would be so enjoyable, no wonder Bridgette and Geoff were always doing it, eh."

She giggled and ruffled his toque-covered hair. "You goofball. I love how innocent you act at times."

The redhead's face lit up, and she snapped her fingers. "That's it, Bridgette! We can ask her to do a threesome with us!"

Ezekiel looked confused. "What's a threesome, eh?"

Izzy grinned impishly. She leaned forward and began to whisper intimately in his ear.

* * *

**(Dressing Room - Lindsay's second room.)**

**Ezekiel** - \His eyes are wide with shock, and his jaw is hanging slightly open.\ "My God, do people actually _do_ that, eh? Do teens normally do that? I mean, this opens up a whole lot of questions, eh!

"Like, how comfortable would Izzy be if another woman was there? Wouldn't we have to check with Geoff first, how would he feel? Would Bridgette be comfortable, for that matter? And how do you kiss both girls at the same time?"

\He looks down at his lap and frowns.\ "And, um, how do you please both girls, eh? What's the other one do when you're busy with one? Isn't the whole thing rather disrespectful, isn't being with one girl enough? Do two guys do it with a girl sometimes, eh?"

\Ezekiel suddenly freezes, looking terrified.\ "Wait a minute, are my parents going to see me asking these questions, eh?"

* * *

**(Warning, contents are maturing. Ezekiel and Izzy.)**

Izzy went back to kissing Ezekiel, licking inside his mouth. He moaned, he couldn't help himself, because no matter how many times she did it to him, the feel of her tongue sent shivers of pleasure throughout his body.

He tried to wrestle his tongue against hers, but she always won. Ezekiel tried to focus on the little battle, but Izzy did something that startled him greatly: she smacked his butt.

"Yipe," he couldn't help but exclaim as Izzy cackled. She ran her hand over his buttocks, a wicked grin on her face. He jumped again when she goosed him.

"Your butt's not too bad, my Zeke," she remarked.

He smirked right back at her, and decided that turnabout was fair play. He smacked her butt, not as hard as she did his, but she still jumped.

"Awk," she exclaimed, then she grinned at him. "Oh, so my Zeke wants to play it that way, huh?

"You started it, eh." Her response was to bat her eyes, then take his hand and guide it under the back of her skirt. She could feel him shiver when she placed his hand on her butt, partly on her panties. He was starting to shiver.

"Zeke, why are you so nervous?" she asked. "I'm even guiding you, you should know I'm comfortable with it. Aren't you?"

"It's... it's just that," he stammered, "I... I doo'nt knoo' why I'm so nervous, eh."

"Then don't be, my Zeke darling. You're with Izzy, and Izzy loves you. So do right by Izzy and love her back."

He swallowed, then managed to smile at her. "Okay, my Dizzy-Izzy."

She grinned, then writhed slightly as he caressed her butt. He never imagined touching someone's butt would be erotic, but there was also the feel of her panties. Ezekiel was soon stroking small circles on Izzy's toosh, and she waited patiently until he was brave enough to place his entire palm down before she started kissing him again.

The two made out as Izzy slipped her hands under his jacket and shirt, massaging his chest. She liked to caress his nipples, which made him shudder if she concentrated enough. He groaned when she traced circles around the areolas.

His hormones and excitement got the better of him, and he reached up her skirt with his other hand, now fondling her buttocks with both hands. She moaned appreciatively as she jammed her tongue in his mouth; Ezekiel knew then why sometimes guys used the expression "tongue down her throat."

The two continued to caress, fondle, and kiss, until Izzy got a wicked idea. She turned on the shower, making sure the water was warm before she dragged them under the flow of water. He looked at her, her wet hair matted down over part of her face, her nipples sticking through her wet top. She looked at him, his jacket and pants clinging to his thin frame, his toque leading a stream of water from the bobble, his face bright red.

"So, um," he whispered, "why'd you do that, eh?"

"Because we're in the shower, and thus, we should get wet!"

He laughed. This was part of the reason why he knew he was in love with Izzy, that logic of hers that was warped but sensible at the same time. He combed her wet hair with his hand, and proceeded to kiss her more. She cooed appreciatively, and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Izzy loved it when Ezekiel was forward like this, as much as she loved his shyness. Him being impulsive around her was perfect, like if he saved this side of himself for her. It was flattering, exciting, and lovely to her. She even popped her foot for a few seconds before the flow of water almost made her lose balance. Luckily, Ezekiel was supporting her, one of his hands still on her butt.

After a little more making out under the running water, Izzy pulled off Ezekiel's jacket and shirt, running her hands over his bare chest. His hands took the hem of her top and started to slowly pull it up. Only after getting an approving look from her eyes did he pull it all the way off. Before he could take off her bra, she stopped him.

"You've got to learn how to unhook these things properly, my Zeke," she instructed him.

She turned around, and gave him step-by-step instructions on how to properly unhook a bra. His hands were shaking at first, then he realized it was because he was giggling as he was doing this. Anticipation and the oddity of the scenario struck him as very funny, and Izzy was also giggling.

When he had properly unhooked her bra and discarded it, he hugged her around the waist and kissed her neck. She leaned against him and stroked his face.

Sinking down to the floor, the two continued to make out under the flow from the shower head. Ezekiel began to treat her breasts with his mouth and hands, making her moan and writhe. Both her and he being soaking wet caused an erotic slide between them.

Ezekiel was a mess of emotions, his mind spinning and his heart pounding. He almost couldn't believe he was doing this, his whole body felt like it was on fire. What surprised him most though, was how much his feelings for Izzy were guiding him. He was using his hands and mouth to pleasure her, to coax more moans from her so he could know he was doing it right.

Soon, his emotional side couldn't take it any more. Lifting Izzy up by the shoulders, he kissed her with the same amount of wild passion that would come from her. Her eyes, which were squinting half-shut beforehand, flew open. He wrapped his arms around her, and stared into her shocked eyes.

"I love you, Izzy," he whispered, the flow of the water almost drowning out the sound. "I love you so much, eh."

Izzy swallowed a lump in her throat that suddenly formed. Tears formed in her eyes, and she hugged him back. The two held each other close before they began kissing again, but not before Izzy could say back, "I love you too, Ezekiel."

* * *

**(Contents still mature. Geoff and Bridgette.)**

Geoff and Bridgette were nearing the same level of physical intensity as Izzy and Ezekiel were, except that the surfer girl still had her bra on. The blond couple were lying in bed, making out with the level of passion that they were known for.

When Geoff reached for her bra straps, she surprised him by grabbing his hands. "Nuh-uh," she scolded him with a sly smile on her flushed face. "You aren't going right for second base just yet, sweetheart."

"Aw c'mon," Geoff whined. "You've got the best boobs ever, Bridgette!"

"Really?" she asked as she cocked one of her slender eyebrows. "Even better than, say, Lindsay?"

Geoff realized this was a critical moment, and he usually messed those up. He mentally coached himself not to bring up doing things like a guy or his friend's hot mom.

"Oh yeah, way better," he said, trying to be as convincing as possible. "Lindsay's boobs are way too big! Must be awkward to hug her, they put way too much distance between whoever she's hugging."

Bridgette started to giggle, so Geoff decided to continue this.

"Yeah, I mean, when they squish against someone, where does all it go? I prefer boobs that are comfortable against someone when you hug them."

The surfer girl rolled off him, laughing so hard that tears came to her eyes. Geoff nervously chuckled, wondering if this was a good sign or not. Bridgette eventually stopped laughing and wiped the tears off of her face. Sitting with her back to him, she said, "Oh Geoff, you say the funniest things, you know that?"

"That's a good thing, right?"

"Of course, you goof."

She reached behind herself and unhooked her bra, then tossed it aside. Turning around, she crawled towards her boyfriend on all fours, a very sexy look on her face. He was stunned by the erotic appeal so much, he didn't react until she was lying on him, kissing his lips, her naked chest on his.

Geoff moaned, his hands feeling up Bridgette's body. She had such nice skin, firm from her years of athletic surfing yet soft from being soaked in water for so long. Bridgette appreciated the feel of his skin too, firm from his years of combined exercise from party dancing and football.

They continued to kiss, feeling each other's bare skin with gentle caresses. Bridgette eventually broke the face sucking to go down and lick his nipples. Geoff hissed air through his teeth, he'd never had anything like that done before to him.

"Ever wonder why men have nipples?" he asked her, his eyes squinting in pleasure.

"Silly question, sweetheart."

"Well, it is something to wonder about, eh. Men don't need them, we don't have milk or anything."

Bridgette began to laugh again, resting her forehead against his chest. Her giggling was music to Geoff's ears, and he stroked her blond hair. She nuzzled him for a little bit longer, then kissed his chest before straddling him.

"Do you really think my boobs are okay?" she asked, her voice vulnerable.

He smiled at her as he glanced at Bridgette. She wasn't as big as most of the girls of Total Drama, but what made her breasts particularly appealing to Geoff was how her nipples were a very cute, bright pink color. Geoff's previous girlfriend before TDI had pale tan nipples, and he believed that Bridgette's were much better.

"They're beautiful," he said with a grin.

"I'm only a B-cup," she admitted, blushing as she stroked her collarbone out of nervousness.

"B for Bridgette."

He reached up and stroked them. She moaned and leaned her head back as he massaged them. This position, with her straddling him and her hands on his chest while he fondled her breasts, she found it very erotic. She continued to groan in pleasure and roll her head around.

"I love you, Geoff," she whispered. "You know that, right?"

"I do, babe. I love you too, you're my girl."

She leaned down to kiss him, and they proceeded to roll around in bed, kissing and groping each other playfully.

* * *

**(Still mature. Gwen and Cody.)**

Gwen and Cody were like Geoff and Bridgette, but much more aggressive. The two were energetically kissing, their hands roaming each other's bodies. So fervent was their passion that sweat was actually beginning to build on their bodies, and both were panting.

The pale, goth girl was only clad in her purple panties, the tech-geek only in his boxers. Both were moaning, writhing, kissing as if their life depended on it.

This had been Cody's dream since the first day of Total Drama Island. And though Gwen had not felt the same until recently, she was into it just as much as he, if not a little more.

Gwen moaned and mewled like a cat in heat when Cody sucked on her nipples (which were a pale peach). He shuddered and whimpered when she would kiss and lick the more sensitive spots of his skin around his neck and chest.

Neither knew how it had come to this, their minds were still swimming. One minute they were kissing and holding hands, the next minute, Gwen was pulling off their clothing and Cody was caressing every inch of her pale skin as lovingly as possible. The young, new couple had discovered a passion for each other so great that it put Bridgette and Geoff's make out sessions to shame.

Cody's incredible lust was not surpassed by his love for her, no matter how intense this was for him. He had wanted for so long to make Gwen happy, even it meant pairing her with another man. Now he could make her happy, and she truly was, writhing and moaning from his treatment.

Gwen could feel that love in Cody's actions, like if it was the flames that came from the fires. Every kiss and touch, she could feel how much he wanted to make her feel good, and it had such a wonderful effect on her that she making very un-Gwen-like moans and cries. All of Gwen's life, she wanted this kind of affection, this kind of unrequited love, the feeling that someone would care for her in her cold life.

Cody was that someone, and it overwhelmed her. She wanted to return it, and so she was all over him, kissing him, feeling him, trying to make him feel as special as he deserves. When it brought tears to her eyes, he affectionately wiped them from her burning cheeks.

"I love you, Cody," she had said, and had meant it. The goth girl had never felt this way about anyone, not even Trent, and she was certain it was love. She wanted him to be happy, and wanted him to be with her.

It had been Cody's turn to cry when she said this, and she returned the affection by wiping his tears away. When he started to blubber about how childish he felt over crying, she kissed him as passionately as she could.

The temperature of the room must have raised, because both were slithery from sweat. Gwen propped one of her legs up on the bed as Cody continued to kiss her; she could feel his erection in his boxers pressing against her, making her swoon.

She reached down and stroked him against the fabric of his underwear. He gasped, shuddering hard at the same time. Gwen gave him that foxy grin that turned him on so much, and now it was complete with blush from her arousal.

"Want to reach third base, Code-Miester?" she asked slyly.

He swallowed hard, wiggling his fingers nervously. "Um, only if you really want to, Gwen."

"Oh, I want to," she purred, lifting herself up so that she and Cody were both sitting. "I really, really want to. And you can reach third base with me after I'm done with you."

Cody was starting to shiver, but he steadied when she kissed him, wrapping her arms around him and cooing for him to calm down. When he was no longer shaking, her hand went down to his waist.

"I promise you that if you are too uncomfortable, Cody," she whispered as she began to pull down his boxers, "that we can stop at any time. But you have to promise me the same thing."

"I promise, Gwen," he said, kissing her lips. "I promise you."

* * *

**(In case you're wondering, still mature. Courtney and Duncan.)**

Courtney lay under the sheets of her bed, naked. She was staring up at the ceiling, deep in thought, and deep in the afterglow.

She could see herself, an image of her before Total Drama Island, yelling at herself over this. "Having sex? And this many times?" she would have shrieked. "Are you some kind of nymphomaniac? Get a grip, you whore, and stop before you catch something, or even get pregnant!"

Unfortunately, there was nothing that could have warned Courtney about how much sex with Duncan would have meant to her.

That wasn't the only thing bothering her right now though. Funny, how she had just finished having a very intense bout of sex with her boyfriend, his arm still wrapped around him, how her mind could drift off to something like this.

It was Ezekiel. The sexist, clueless, prairie boy whom she had never given a second thought about after he had blown TDI; that is, until he started getting involved with Izzy.

That shouldn't bother her, so why did it? Sure, she was mad that they snuck on the show, even madder that they were now on it; however, it seemed to be the relationship that was bothering her the most now.

She had been furious over Izzy ever since the redhead had cursed them out, and especially when she declared to everyone that Duncan and Courtney had been having sex. How Izzy had known, she didn't know.

Now her thoughts were focused on Ezekiel, trying to figure him out. How could he _want_ to date a girl like Izzy? She would tear him apart over one of his sexist comments. Why was Bridgette now defending him? She knew the surfer girl was a sensible person.

Most of all was the Guilded Chris trophy that he and Izzy had sent Bridgette and Geoff. The blond couple was so touched over that, there couldn't have been any bad intentions over such a gift.

Could she be wrong about Ezekiel? Now, when he seemed to have turned a new leaf? He was still dating Izzy, there was that, but when Courtney had seen how happy Bridgette was with the award that she never received but was holding in her hands, it was like the slate had been cleaned.

As she tried to think of what she, a CIT, should do about this, Duncan's arm wrapped around her tighter, pulling her closer. She hummed happily, pleased with the affection. Then she felt his hand squeeze one of her breasts and begin fondling it.

She sighed. Duncan, not a romantic bone in his body, all physical. It had a strange ying-yang effect of making her mad and turned on at the same time.

This was not something she could talk to him about, at least, not yet. Courtney really wished she could trust Duncan more with her feelings, but she was afraid he would laugh. He really shouldn't, though; after all, they were having sex so often, he owed it to her to lend his ear and shoulder to her.

Her issues in mind were suddenly put aside when Duncan turned her around to him and began to kiss her. She at first tried to push away, but sank into it. His body warmth and strong arms were like a haven, and she didn't want to leave the haven, even though she was sure she knew were this would lead.

Sure enough, he rolled her onto her back, and got into position. After a few more minutes of foreplay, kissing, and applying another condom, they began to have sex. While it took place, Courtney, for the first time, noticed how loud she was.

"_Maybe that's how Izzy found out,_" she thought, as the image of her past self came back to glare at her. "_Maybe the others knew too, they just weren't saying anything..._"

Too bad the sex was so great, that those thoughts were driven from her mind and replaced with intense pleasure. Courtney may now know how loud she is, but it wasn't dampening her enthusiasm.

* * *

**(Still not safe for you minors yet, still mature. Back to Izzy and Ezekiel.)**

The redhead and the brunet in the shower were still not done. Second base between them under the running water was a new type of erotic, romantic setting that they wanted to keep. Izzy had even taken to wearing Ezekiel's hat again.

"You going to wear that every time we make 'oot, eh?" he asked, smiling at her as he played with her breasts.

"So long as it gives Izzy cuteness powers like it gives you, then I intend to steal them to make myself more cute for you," she replied as she fondled his butt. She leaned and whispered in his ear, "Maybe when we are ready to have sex, I'll wear it then too."

Ezekiel almost choked. He almost missed the irony of how he was here, exploring his topless girlfriend's body, and still managed to get embarrassed. He began to stammer, "Um, Izzy? A'boot that-"

He was cut off when she swooped over and kissed him on the lips. Ezekiel moaned and reached up to cup her face.

"You knoo', I never could get tired of kissing you, eh," he whispered to her.

"Really? What if our lips and mouths get swollen and raw?"

"I still wouldn't tire of it."

"What if our tongues got tied together from all the wrestling?"

"Not even then, eh."

"What if," she tapped her chin in thought, "what if we had that threesome with Bridgette, and her lips had a better taste than mine?"

"I only want to kiss you, Izzy."

He pulled her close to him, feeling her heartbeat against his chest; he hoped that she could feel his. "I love you, Izzy, I only want you."

She batted her eyes, then her impish smile returned. "But you really should kiss another girl in your lifetime, my Zeke."

"Why? I want you," he said, then he thought of something that started to make him panic. "Or is that something that's expected these days, eh?"

"Huh?" Izzy grunted, cocking her head to the side.

"I mean, I doo'nt knoo' all that happens today," Ezekiel whimpered, nervous now, "and is it necessary for a guy to date other girls befurhand, eh? Is it?"

"Zeke..."

"Is it mandatory, or something like that, eh?"

She put her hands on his shoulders. "I was just teasing you, my Zeke."

"Oh? Oh..."

"You worry too much," she said with a giggle, brushing her lips against his cheeks and ear. "You have me at second base, you have my love and support, and you're getting a warm shower too. Why are you so nervous around me?"

"I... doo'nt want to wind it, eh."

" 'Wind it'? Oh, you must mean 'blow it', my Zeke. Listen, Zeke..."

She turned his face to his, making sure his eyes met hers. "I love you, you hear that? I love your kindness, your shyness, from up to your toque down to your little 'toes-que.' I wouldn't let you suck on my tits or stroke my ass if I didn't love you."

Her blunt words made him blush, and she stroked his face as she continued to talk. "One day, when we're free from all these stupid cameras, when we don't have to worry about any of the jerks like Chris or Heather or Courtney finding out, we can do whatever we want.

"I trust you, I love you. We could do all kinds of stuff together, and it's because of that trust and love. Also, because when I see those shy eyes of yours, that adorable toque, and that blush on your face, sometimes I want you to just lay me down and really, really fuck me."

Ezekiel's jaw dropped while Izzy giggled. "Wow, I love that look on your face," she said. "Shame I'll never get that shock value twice."

"Izzy," he stammered, "I... I... I never knew you swore like that!"

"There's still a few things that you don't know know about me, my sweet Zeke. But I hope that one day, you know most of them."

She kissed him on the lips, her eyes twinkling with merriment. "Would you like to one day make love, my Zeke?"

"Y-yes," he stammered.

"I'd like that too, when we get off this damn show."

They began to kiss again, lying back on the shower floor and gripping each other. Ezekiel's mind was spinning harder than ever over what Izzy had said, it had shocked him very much.

"_I do want to wait though, Izzy,_" he thought, wishing he had the courage to say it. "_You... you're so forward all of a sudden, about us going that far, eh._

_Is this a'boot that secret shame you've bin hiding from me? Is there a reason why you want to rush our relationship to that kind of level?_"

He tried to think more, but her lips and hands brought his full attention back to her. Ezekiel moaned and held her close in the most loving embrace he could, and she cooed appreciatively. The passion was renewed.

* * *

**(Okay, NOW it's safe! Come out from hiding, it's for all ages now.)**

Tyler smirked as he watched his fellow ex-contestants come down for breakfast. Geoff, Bridgette, Cody, Gwen, Duncan, and Courtney were all sitting at the same table he was. The jock could not remove the smile from his face as he watched the three couples.

After a short while, they all noticed him grinning at them. "What?" Courtney snapped. "Is something funny, Tyler?"

"Can't a guy smile?" he asked, shrugging.

Bridgette clasped her hands and cried out in joy. "Lindsay decided to keep dating you, right Tyler?"

His face fell. Looking to the side, he muttered, "Um, no, she hasn't made up her mind yet."

Bridgette felt like she had just stepped on a kitten. She hung her head in shame, and nibbled at her breakfast. After a few more minutes, Tyler was all smiles again.

"What's so funny?" Gwen asked him.

"Yeah, dude," Cody said, looking down to see if his fly was undone.

"Oh nothing, just you three couples," he remarked, wiggling his eyebrows. "All glowing."

The girls blushed, and the guys tried to play innocent. Duncan drummed his fingers on the table and scowled at Tyler.

"What, you think it's funny that couples sit together or something, jock boy?" he asked.

"More than that," Tyler said, his grin becoming as mischievous as Izzy's. "Just that, I was in the hallway this morning, and I couldn't help but notice that Duncan came out of Courtney's room, Cody came out of Gwen's room, and Bridgette came out of Geoff's room."

Now all six of them were blushing, and looking around as if trying to find an excuse. Tyler triumphantly leaned back in his chair.

"You're all growing up so fast," he added.

* * *

"So, we have eight competitors left," Chris Maclean remarked the morning of the next challenge. "Eight competitors, and lucky for us, four boys and four girls."

Said eight contestants exchanged glances, wondering what exactly the host was planning. Chef Hatchet stood nearby DJ, looking impatient and bitter.

Chris snapped his fingers and continued. "Thus, we feel a little bit obligated to do the lamest of all movie genres: romance!"

"Romantic movies aren't lame," Beth shouted, throwing her fists into the air.

"That's cold, man, it really is," DJ added, but Chef Hatchet elbowed him and muttered something about "tough it out."

"You're just bitter, Chris," Leshawna shot at him, "because no one could love a sadist like you."

The host actually laughed at this. "Who needs romance? I can get me tail anytime."

As if on cue, the bimbo he had been cuddling for the past couple weeks appeared, and draped herself on his shoulder. Her fake breasts pressed against his side. Ezekiel felt like gagging seeing this, as did several of the others.

"_How could she degrade herself like that, eh?_" he thought.

"_Tyler's mom is parading her Lara Croft bazookas around again,_" Izzy thought to herself, twiddling her fingers. "_She really must have no shame, seeing as how she must know her son is on this show._

"_I think I'll do something to her during this show, as a little way of giving her karma retribution. That is, if banging Chris Maclean isn't scarring enough._"

"We have the set for a grand ball ready for the lot of you," Chris Maclean explained to the contestants as he pulled Andrea closer to him. "Only no dresses, no suits, just try your best to look as romantic as possible. The least two romantic of the four couples will have to vote someone off among them!"

* * *

**(Dressing Room - We're in love with Confessional Cam.)**

**Izzy** - "Ha! Like Chris would know anything about romance. Ezekiel and I are so romantic, I think we'd melt him. Yeah, like the Wicked Witch of the East, our kiss would melt him, melt him! Woohoo!"

**Harold** - "Yes! This could be my big chance to reach Leshawna's heart! I can do this!"

**Ezekiel** - "Man, I really wish Chris would stop groping... that woman. But then a'geen, if he knoo's how much some of us doo'nt like it, he'd probably do it moo'r, eh."

* * *

"The couples have already been chosen, by the way," Chris said, pointing to Chef Hatchet. "Our fabulous cook and friend here chose the couples."

The eight immediately started to protest, but a bark from Chef silenced them. Chris grinned, then he and Andrea started to head off.

"Where are you going?" Leshawna asked him. "Aren't you going to watch and judge the performance?"

"Naw, love makes me sick," Chris said. "So Andrea and I are going to have some real fun while you all embarrass yourselves."

"At least we _can_, eh," Ezekiel shot at the host, glaring mostly at Tyler's mom. The two adults didn't understand this, so they simply walked away.

"What do you mean by that?" Beth asked Ezekiel.

"Since Chris and that woman have no shame, they cannot be embarrassed, eh."

"My Zeke, so philosophical," Izzy exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his waist and kissing his cheek.

His face flushed when she did this. He felt a tad hypocritical when a pleasurable wave washed over him as Izzy's breasts grazed his side, but he reminded himself that it was because he loved Izzy. Also, second base last night in the showers might have distracted him.

Izzy was suddenly pulled from Ezekiel by Chef Hatchet. "Stop kissing the prairie boy, crazy girl, you're not his partner this time. You're with pretty boy!"

He shoved Izzy at Justin, and the redhead glared at the male model. Justin glared right back, not happy with his choice of partner.

* * *

**(Dressing Room - Justizzy?)**

**Chef Hatchet** - "It really didn't matter who Justin's partner was, I just didn't want to see Izzy and Ezekiel making out. Also, since DJ is assured to win this since I am judge, what problem is there?"

"... Wait, should I be saying this in the confessional? Chris might be watching this, so I should be a professional about this, like he would."

**Chris Maclean and Andrea** - \They are making out, pawing at each other, then they fall out of the chair. The noises increase down there.\

* * *

"The other couples are DJ and Heather, Leshawna and Harold, and Ezekiel and Beth," Chef Hatchet barked at them. "Now let's go, maggots, and get this mushy-fest over with."

As they walked on the way there, each couple had a brief exchange. Harold was giving Leshawna some very fond glances, which she tried to ignore. DJ was giving Heather compliments, all of them provided by "studly" Chef Hatchet (which he addressed himself as, not us).

Justin and Izzy were glaring more daggers at each other, and Beth and Ezekiel were exchanging small talk. She lamented how she couldn't be Justin's "date" for this dance, so Ezekiel tried to cheer her up by saying she could ask him after the ball.

They entered a large building, and the inside was designed as a lavish ball. They were impressed, until Chef Hatchet started the music.

* * *

**(Dressing Room - No one invited me to the ball.)**

**Harold** - "Who decided that rap music should be played at dances? Gosh, what idiots!"

**Leshawna** - "Death metal does not fit a room decorated like Cinderella's ball!"

**Ezekiel** - "I doo'nt really knoo' how to dance, but I knoo' I cannot dance to music where the guy's singing a'boot 'getting doo'n with the sickness,' eh. He sounds way too mad for someone who's sick, maybe he got the plague?"

* * *

Chef Hatchet elbowed DJ towards Heather, and soon the gentle giant was, most sorely, dancing with the queen bee. The others looked rather sympathetic for DJ.

Izzy, who very much resented being with Justin, sulked over to the buffet way in the back. She started chowing down on celery sticks, practically drowning them in dipping sauce. Justin stood nearby, his firm arms crossed and his beautiful eyes narrowed.

Harold asked Leshawna to dance, and she only did when he promised not to read much into it. Though the music was loud, hateful, and without a rhythm, Harold did a good job at leading her. Chef Hatchet rolled his eyes at the sight of the lanky nerd dancing with the plus-sized sister, but the two were enjoying themselves.

Beth and Ezekiel tried dancing, but the music put them off too much. The farm girl headed over to one of the tables, where a giant bowl of punch was set.

"Oh, look at how big this is," Beth cooed, grabbing the sides of the punch bowl. "I love how beautiful it looks!"

The song playing suddenly let out a particularly loud, bloodcurdling scream. Beth screamed in reply, throwing her hands up. This pitched the large punch bowl over the side, and it not only soaked Ezekiel, but the heavy bowl landed right on his foot.

Ezekiel clutched his foot, hobbling on one leg as tears of pain came from his eyes. Beth panicked, and went to Chef Hatchet. The large man groaned as he realized he was going to have to change into his nurse skirt, but it was better than being here listening to the music he was playing.

Izzy didn't notice Ezekiel, Beth, and Chef Hatchet leave. She was busy eating, and shooting Justin glares.

Finally, the male model couldn't take the hostility. "What's your problem, E-Scope?" Justin snapped at her. "I'm tired of those looks you're giving me."

Izzy growled. "You're a deceptive, devious, schemer!"

"We all want to win this contest. You snuck onto the contest illegally, remember?"

"You know what I'm talking about, really hot guy," she snapped, biting a celery stick in half. "How you've been using Beth and Lindsay."

"Oh that. Can I help it if they cannot resist this smile?"

Justin grinned, and Izzy forced herself to look away before she was unable to physically do so. With a sigh, she added, "You're no better than Heather."

"Not true, I at least treat them with respect, and never asked them for anything more than support."

"You're only pretending to like them."

"Oh? That any different than how you're dating Ezekiel?"

He was hit in the face with a celery stick, leaving smears of dipping sauce. With a disgusted sigh, he wiped it away with a finger as he looked at Izzy. She was red in the face, glaring at him furiously.

"That the best you got?" Justin asked, smirking. He found this ironic, it was the second time someone really mad at him had thrown a bit of food at him.

"Don't you dare insult my Zeke," she hissed at him. "I know a narcissistic jerk like you cannot see how people love others besides themselves, but I love him."

"Huh," he grunted. "Poor guy doesn't know what he's getting into."

"And what is that supposed to mean, really hot but mean guy?"

"Means he's dating a psychopath who has more issues than a magazine rack."

Izzy's eye twitched, but Justin's verbal assault continued. "You're a real weirdo, 'E-Scope', and everyone thinks that. I'm sure he does to, no matter how nice he is to you. You howl at the moon, you ramble about unrealistic stories, and you enjoy pain.

"If you are this big a basket case, I wonder how your family is. It'll probably be like a family reunion with Leatherface."

Izzy blanched. A bit of dipping sauce dripped from her mouth, and she began to squeeze her fists.

"How dare you," she hissed. "I outta come over there and go Leatherface on your gorgeous face!"

"See, this is just what I'm talking about," Justin said. "You're a nut case, and your family is probably just as bad. Are you the Leatherface of the family, the most insane of them all?"

Izzy suddenly found herself short of breath, and he noticed this. He chuckled, narrowing his eyes at her. "Ah, so that's the case? You're the psycho of the family? Well then, Izzy, how much is your family going to like him? If they even like you?"

The redhead was heaving for breath, leaning against the table for support. Her eyes were wide, and she could hear herself mentally screaming to stop looking so vulnerable, but she couldn't help it.

"Face it, either your family isn't going to accept him, or he's not going to accept them. Not everyone drinks the kool-aid."

She couldn't even correct him for calling her by her real name, she could barely breathe. Her throat was plugged with a terrible lump that she couldn't get down by swallowing.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I touch a nerve?" he cruelly added. "Hard to face reality when you keep making up your own fantasies, isn't it, _Izzy_?"

"Fuck you," she shrieked, slamming her fists on the table. "Just go burn in hell!"

With a choked sob, she ran away, out of the decorated studio.

Justin raised an eyebrow, then looked back on the dance floor. The two couples, Heather and DJ, Harold and Leshawna, were unaware about the fight, for they were still dancing.

"Looks like the winners will be easy to spot," Justin said to himself. "Better make sure they vote for someone else besides Moi."

* * *

Bridgette and Geoff were heading towards the hot tub, an arm wrapped around the other's waist. Both were exchanging excited grins.

"You know, it's been a long time since we've used the hot tub, babe," he said, his grin ear to ear.

"It really has," she replied, beaming at him.

When they opened the door, they very quickly noticed someone was sitting in the hot tub. A quick turn of the person's head, and they recognized it was Tyler.

"What are you doing in here?" he asked angrily, but then his face softened and he groaned. "Oh, when are they going to get that damn lock fixed?"

"Sorry, dude," Geoff muttered. He sighed and turned around, looking at Bridgette; he had been looking really forward to this. "We'd better go."

But Bridgette was staring at Tyler. The surfer girl had seen how bloodshot his eyes were, and she feared the worst. "Tyler," she called out to him, tentatively, "are you okay?"

He didn't answer at first, then he managed to croak out, "She picked Owen." Geoff swallowed. "Oh. Damn, dude."

"She did?" Bridgette asked, her voice light. "I... I really thought she would continue to date you, Tyler."

"So did I," he muttered, then sighed. "No, no I really didn't think so. Ever since the damn season started without me, and with my stupid mom acting like a whore on the screen..."

He began to sob, covering his face with his hands. "I should have known I was fucked from the start. I don't know what I did to make God or Chris Maclean hate me so much, but they just decided to really fuck me over, you know?"

Bridgette had her hands covering her mouth as Geoff winced from Tyler's harsh words. The jock didn't stop there, but his voice was seriously cracking.

"You want to know what she said to me?" he asked. "You know what my sweet, honest, beautiful Lindsay said to me to tell me she preferred that fatso over me?"

* * *

_When Lindsay approached Tyler, he thought at first she was just saying hello. Then she spoke._

_"Tyler... I came to a concussion over who I'd like to date," she said._

_At first, he was delighted, and smiled at her. He saw her sad look, and immediately he knew what the answer was. He took a deep breath as she struggled over the words._

_"I... I think you're an awesome guy, Tyler," she started to say. "You're really talented, handsome, and very nice..."_

_He didn't want to hear this. He really didn't want to hear her say this, he knew what was coming._

_"But, you know," she tapped her lips as she bit her lower one nervously, "I really do like being with Owen. He's really sweet."_

_Okay, he wanted to hear this even less._

_"I think we had some great times together, but I don't think it'll last too long," she admitted. "We never had much time to envelope our relationship, and... and I've had a lot more time with Owen."_

_Tyler could feel every part of his body ache, but his chest felt hollow, like a numb pain of something that should be there but wasn't._

_"I really do like you, Tyler, and I hope we can continue to be friends," she continued, nervously fidgeting with her hands behind her back, "and I'll never forget our time together on the island... that... really wasn't an island, and at Pizza des Losers. The first one, that is."_

_She put a hand on his shoulder. "If it'll make it up to you, I could introduce you to my sister Paula! She's almost as pretty as me, and I think she likes sports."_

_He sighed, all he could do, and shook his head. "I...," he stammered, "I understand. I hope... you're happy with him, Lindsay."_

_She nodded, and he could see tears in her eyes. She kissed his forehead, the sweetest kiss he had ever received from her, and then she walked off, looking back at him a couple times._

* * *

"I don't want to date her sister," Tyler shouted as he punched the water. "I want to date her!

"It's not!" he continued to punch the water, harder with every word, "Fucking! Fair! I should have been in that damn contest! If Chris wasn't such a douche bag, if that jackass wasn't fucking my mom, if... if..."

He collapsed again, face in his hands. Sobbing bitterly, he muttered, "I never should have signed up for this show."

To his surprise, a soft hand rubbed his shoulder. For a very brief, desperate moment, he thought it might be Lindsay, but it was another blond girl: Bridgette.

"Tyler," she whispered, "I'm so sorry."

"Not your fault," he muttered. "You didn't encourage her to go after Owen, like half of the stupid, fucking cast. Everyone wanted to see me hurting, didn't they?"

"Dude," Geoff suddenly chimed in, "this isn't healthy. C'mon, man, Bridgette and I will treat you to dinner or something, how's that sound?"

"Dinner is free around here, Geoff," Tyler grumbled.

"We'll go out, like, say, tomorrow! Let's go to that restaurant where Izzy and Ezekiel went out to!"

Bridgette frowned at Geoff, but to her surprised, Tyler gave him a small nod. "Okay, dude."

* * *

Chris Maclean looked at the seven contestants sitting in the stands. "Where's Ezekiel?" he asked after he figured out which one was missing.

"He's still at Chef Hatchet's medical tent," Beth said, looking nervous. "He's going to need a crutch for a couple days."

"Bummer," Chris said, shrugging. He then grinned and said, "Guess while some of us have great days full of hot sex, some of us hurt our feet."

Most of the young adults groaned at this. The only one to not was Izzy, who was staring down at her feet with dead eyes. The redhead looked like someone had sapped the life energy from her, her depressed state was so deep.

"_It can't come to that,_" she was thinking desperately. "_There's a chance... isn't there? It's possible... no, now that I think about it... no... no... why? Why can't they... why can't I... I... oh God..._"

She began to sob physically, holding it back as much as she can. Some of the others noticed this, but Chris dragged their attention back to him.

"Now you all can cast your votes on the electronic devices underneath your seats," he instructed them. "The person with the most votes walks to the Lame-o-Sine, and rides it to Loserville!

"Chef told me that the winners were DJ and Heather, and Harold and Leshawna. So you can only vote for Ezekiel, Izzy, Justin, and Beth. To make up for Ezekiel not being here to vote, I'm just gonna have a vote cast at random."

Izzy barely managed the energy to cast her vote towards Justin. She dropped it after entering the vote, and covered her face with her hands.

"_Did he know somehow?_" she thought, trying to hold back tears. "_Why? Why can't I be happy with Ezekiel? God damn it, I hate this..._"

"The votes have all been cast," Chris said cheerfully. He looked at the list and grinned. "Ooo, this one is a real doozy."

* * *

**(Dressing Room - Chris, no one says 'doozy' anymore.)**

**Justin** - "Hearing about Chris's sex life is enough to make anyone want to be voted off. So I'm actually doing her a favor."

**Beth** - "Justin said if we voted for Izzy, it would save me from being voted off since I screwed things up with Ezekiel. Isn't Justin so nice?"

**Leshawna** - "Man, why can't we have a break and vote off Heather? How does she stay in the game for so long, huh?"

**Harold** - "Yeah, I don't care what Justin says, I'm not voting for Izzy. I'm voting for him, he's a devious fiend! He reminds me of a Square-Enix villain, gorgeous but sinister!"

* * *

"And the Gilded Chris Awards go to...," Chris hesitated, then said, "Harold and Leshawna!"

The two caught their trophies, and Harold playfully "clinked" his trophy against hers. She rolled her eyes but smiled at him.

"And the final award of the night, between Justin and Izzy," the host continued, "goes to...

...

...

...

"Justin, of course!"

The host tossed the final award to Justin, who caught it with a triumphant grin. Beth cheered silently and clapped, trying not to alert Izzy's attention.

"Okay, _E-Scope_," Chris added effort into Izzy's nickname, "it's time for you to go. Don't make me call the bouncers this time."

Izzy stood up, her eyes downcast. She walked off the bleachers and headed towards the Lame-o-Sine, then stopped.

"Wait, Ezekiel," she said, turning around. "I want to say good-bye to my Zek-"

"Oh don't bother," Justin called out to him. "This'll just save you time when you have to say good-bye for good."

"Yeah, psycho hose-beast," Heather jeered as well. "Even rednecks have standards."

The words hit Izzy harder than anything she had ever encountered, physical or mental. Her heart felt like it was about to implode, and bitter tears stung her eyes. Heaving a gasp, she turned and ran towards the Lame-o-Sine.

After she got in it and it sped off, Chris Maclean muttered, "Well, that certainly went better than I thought it would, what with it being Izzy and all. Now then, everyone's happy, and we can call it a night-"

"IZZY!"

Ezekiel, hobbling on a crutch, was heading towards the Award Ceremony as fast as he could. He had been scanning the bleachers ever since he was close, and hadn't seen his girlfriend.

"Where is she, eh?" he asked the others desperately. "Where is she? You... you didn't-"

"Yes, we did," Heather replied, snooty as ever. "You should be glad, it's quite obvious you two are heading nowhere."

"You should have seen how she looked, dude," Justin added. "She really looked ashamed."

The others were uncomfortably exchanging looks; all except for Leshawna, who was pantomiming taking an arrow from an invisible quiver, notching into an invisible bow, and aiming it at Heather.

"No... no...," Ezekiel moaned, falling to his knees.

"I warned you, Home School," Chef Hatchet, who was following Ezekiel, said. "I told you they voted her off, knew it ever since I heard how that dance went after I left to tend your trotter."

"Why would you do this?" the prairie boy shouted at the others. "What did she do, eh? Why'd you vote her off?!"

"Dude, she threw a hissy-fit at the dance," Justin remarked. "Left us little choice."

"Why didn't you let me say good-bye?" he asked as tears came to his eyes, staring at where the Lame-o-Sine had been.

"Well, she might have been able to stay," Leshawna said, glaring at Heather, "but white girl here felt compelled to insult her."

"Is it my fault," Heather retorted, "that the psycho hose-beast is ashamed of her family, or her boyfriend, or maybe both?"

"What?" was all Ezekiel could say.

"Dude," Justin said, patting his shoulder as he walked by him, "methinks Izzy wants to break up with you, because she's got some serious issues. You have my sympathies."

* * *

**(Dressing Room - Ouch.)**

**Justin** - \He shrugs.\ "What can I say? Izzy was the one who overreacted from the start. Just takes a crafty planner, like me, to direct the anger so that it hurts the venter, not the gorgeous guy she's venting at."

**Harold** - "Justin and Heather took that _way_ too far! Insulting family and relationships? Idiots!"

**Beth** - "I... don't know if I really got all that. Is it really true, Izzy's ashamed of Ezekiel? Or is it his family? I'm so confused."

**Ezekiel** - \His eyes are bloodshot from crying, and his face is still a little cracked.\ "I doo'nt understand... we were getting along so well... why didn't she want to say good-bye? It's not like Izzy to up and leave, what... what..."

\He stops stammering, and looks directly at the camera/mirror.\ "Izzy! If you're seeing this, please listen to me! I love you, eh! Whatever is bothering you, we can talk a'boot it when I see you a'geen! It won't be long, I'll even ask them to vote me off if I have!

"I doo'nt care a'boot this stupid show, I never did! All I want now is to be with you, to help you with what is bothering you! Please Izzy... I want to help you, eh."

* * *

**(Later that night.)**

It was very late at night, some could call it very early morning, when there was a knock on the boys' trailer door. Ezekiel was the only one awake, but the knocking was so powerful that the other three boys were jarred awake.

"Idiot," Harold grumbled as he removed his finger from his nose. "Why is someone hitting the door with a hammer?"

"Hey Home School," Chef Hatchet called from outside, "you got a phone call!"

"Is this your mom again?" Justin asked, frowning. "You guys live in a different time zone or something?"

Ezekiel ignored this comment. He quickly got dressed and headed out, making a beeline for the cafeteria tent. The sprint in his step was from the desire that Izzy was the one calling him, and he got so desperate that when he picked up the phone, he blurted out, "Izzy? Is that you, eh?"

"No, it isn't, Ezekiel," said Bridgette.

He collapsed in a chair, sighing heavily. "Soo'ry, Bridgette," he muttered softly, "I was... I really was hoping that..."

"It's okay, I understand," she said. The surfer girl sounded distraught, almost as much as him. "Ezekiel, I need to tell you something."

"What, what is it?"

"We know that Izzy was voted off tonight, but... she isn't here."

"What? What do you mean?"

"The Lame-o-Sine arrived a couple hours ago, but she wasn't in it, Zeke."

Ezekiel's heart skipped a couple beats, causing him to clutch his chest in pain. He began to shudder as Bridgette, her voice also quivering, said, "We don't know where Izzy is."

* * *

**End of Part 12.**

* * *

In every life, a little rain must fall.

Consider this the "fight scene" that most romantic stories include. I didn't want to have that, so I made this.

I know a lot of you are probably upset that Izzy didn't last too long returning to TDA, but to be truthful, I never considered them being on the show until the idea was pitched. And since I really want to focus on the romance and not the show, it came to this. You want focus on the show, there is always the sequel to TDC.

This story is not over yet, still got a few more chapters. Also, I'm considering an extra chapter, for those of you who want some more mature goodness; let me know if you do.


	13. Mizzing Izzy

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - This chapter is pretty short, but I think you all will still enjoy it, eh.

* * *

**Chapter 13** - A Rather Unlucky Chapter

* * *

Ezekiel wanted to leave the set of Total Drama Action the moment he heard Izzy had gone missing. He would have ran all over the city, had Chris Maclean not stopped him.

"You keep sneaking on the show," the host declared, "and now that you're on the show, you want off! I don't get you kids today!"

"I have to find Izzy," Ezekiel pleaded to him. "Please, just let me go, and I'll-"

"No such luck, we need to make sure you're around for the next episode, whenever it may be," Chris said, shaking his head. He would have sounded official and professional, if he didn't have a sadistic grin on his face. "Oh, and don't bother trying to sneak off, I'll have guards posted around the lot to make sure you don't give us the slip."

Ezekiel didn't believe that until he looked at the entrance of the film lot that night, and saw a couple, very strong looking men armed with tranquilizers. The prairie boy had never been to a zoo or a prison, but he felt now he knew what they were like.

After exhausting himself trying to think of what to do, he collapsed in his bed. Harold, Justin, and DJ were asleep again, but Ezekiel couldn't sleep. He tried to think about what Izzy could have done.

"_Did she go home?_" he thought, the most reasonable of scenarios. "_Maybe she wanted to check into a hotel to avoid the others? Please... please tell me she isn't going to hurt herself._"

One of the things that had always scared Ezekiel was that teenagers and young people were into all kinds of horrible, self-deprecating things. There was self-mutilation, depression, continuing to date bad people, and suicide. The last one really scared him, especially since whenever he heard it on the news, the people who knew the dead person usually said they never saw it coming.

"_Izzy_," he thought, tears coming to his eyes as his imagination started to envision the worst-case scenario, "_please doo'nt do anything bad. I never got a chance to say good-bye if you did..._"

* * *

Izzy had curled up behind a dumpster in an alleyway. Relatively clean and not too bad smelling, she huddled herself in a corner.

Her eyes were still bloodshot, her legs felt like lead, and her throat was parched, but she ignored it all. All she cared about was that she was away from prying eyes.

"_No one can see me here,_" she reasoned with herself. "_No cameras, no judgmental jerks, nobody. No one._"

A stray alley cat leapt out from behind some trash cans, and then walked over to her. The orange-and-white feline studied Izzy with curious eyes, obviously wondering what a human was doing in his territory.

"Go away, kitty, I'm not good company," she grumbled. "I've had the worst of all fricking days."

The cat jumped in her lap, and started nuzzling her stomach. Izzy flinched, then she sighed. She pet its dirty fur, then sighed.

"Stubborn little thing, aren't you?" she asked. "I used to be like that, never yielding to what anyone said or did. I was the toughest bitch you ever saw, a real wild cat. I would've cat-fought over this alley with you, and I would've won a bloody victory."

The kitty curled up and began to purr.

"And now, I am nothing," she said. She didn't cry, she had been doing enough of that. "I don't deserve Ezekiel, you know that, kitty?"

The cat continued to purr as she stroked it. "He's wonderful. He's everyone I ever wanted, and more... and I don't deserve him."

She sighed, and shook her head. "I don't know who to blame for it either. So many factors... no wonder they say love is complicated. It's so damn complex, it makes Izzy's head spin. And it takes a lot to make that happy, my kitty."

The orange-and-white cat was still a purring ball of cuteness and love, as if Izzy's sorrowful words calmed it. The redhead couldn't help but chuckle, though still sad.

"If my problems make you sleepy, you must be one stressed street cat," she remarked. "Want a partner in crime?" 

* * *

Ezekiel slept in late the next day, his worries and stresses having run him ragged. Izzy woke up early, and found her new cat friend was still eager to hang out with her; the redhead pretended to be an alley cat for a while to keep her mind off her troubles, but stopped when she was chased out of a fish store.

By early afternoon, at Playa des Losers 2, Bridgette was frantically trying to get the others to help her in a massive search. "There are fifteen of us," she was telling all of them, "and so, if we split into groups of three-"

"Lemme guess," Duncan interrupted, "you and Geoff in one, and someone to pull you two apart every five minutes."

She ignored him. "Look, we need to search all the places Izzy might have gone! She's probably hurt, maybe she wandered off, but we need to-"

"Oh please," he interrupted again. "You care that much about the crazy girl? She's probably chasing cars and biting tires."

"Duncan, knock it off," Bridgette said, as she and Courtney scowled at the punk.

This set off Duncan a little bit more than the surfer girl expected. "I don't have to take any of that lip from you," he shouted, greatly startling everyone. "You don't tell me what to do, surfer bitch!"

"Duncan," Courtney exclaimed, her hands over her mouth.

Bridgette's eyes widened, then narrowed. "Alright, Duncan," she growled, "I've had it with you. You can just stay here, I'm sure if you were on the road, you'd be arrested in five minutes!"

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Duncan shot back, his eyes wide with hatred. "I'm sure if I broke your surfboard over your head, no jury would convict me!"

"Dude," Geoff shouted, looking horrified. Before he could say anything more, he had to react and grab Bridgette, because his girlfriend was stomping towards Duncan, hand ready to hit him.

With Geoff and Trent holding Bridgette back, and Courtney and Owen holding Duncan back, the fight resumed to more shouting. "I've had it with you," Bridgette shrieked, her face red in anger. "You've been a complete asshole to me ever since we met, and I never did anything to you!"

"What are you talking about?" Duncan snarled. "I treated you like everyone else, I just don't want to have to put up with you anymore!"

"You rallied the others to vote me off! Twice! And you've been nothing but rude to me here!"

"Well, maybe that's because I don't like how your overly-hormonal behavior is turning my friend into an idiot," Duncan managed to free himself from Courtney's grasp, but Owen still had a strong, beefy hold on him. "Girls like you ruin guys, you stuck-up, holier-than-thou bitches!"

"He does realize," Noah whispered to Eva, "that he's talking about _Bridgette_, right?"

"Dude, stop it," Geoff wailed, looking hurt over the whole ordeal. "C'mon man, we're all friends here!"

"Like hell we are," Bridgette spat, scowling at her boyfriend. "Why aren't you mad at him, Geoff? He's a jerk!"

"But... but babe-"

"He's never been your friend, Geoff! He's just a two-faced ex-convict!"

"See? SEE?!" Duncan shrieked, pointing a finger at Bridgette accusingly. He had to take a deep breath before continuing, because Owen's grip was tightening. "You're trying to turn my friend against me! You're the two-faced one!"

"You're just a jealous punk," she retorted. "You were jealous that Geoff and I had each other when you didn't have Courtney, you always were! You can't stand it to see us happy when you don't have your girlfriend around!"

"You're lucky Owen's holding me back, or I'd come over there and rearrange your face, you fink!"

"What's wrong with you two?" Courtney shouted, her face contorted with shock and frustration. "Stop it, why do you hate each other so much?!"

"Bridgette must remind Duncan of someone he really doesn't like."

Everyone was startled to see Izzy standing nearby. Her being dirty, smelling lightly of fish, and holding a stray cat in her hands only added to the shock value.

"Rizzy, you're here," Lindsay cheered. She went to hug her, then asked, "So, what did you mean about Belinda reminding Toucan about someone?"

"Well, he called her 'fink'," Izzy said, looking rather calm despite the hostility in the air. "The last time I called someone 'fink' was when someone tried to rat me out to the RCMP, so I'm guessing..."

She looked at Bridgette, then at Duncan, and smiled; it was a serene kind of smile, not the wild Izzy kind. "Duncan, I'm guessing some girl who was a lot like Bridgette called the police on you, and that's how you ended up in juvie?"

The punk's face contorted, more of shock than anger. "How... how," he stammered, looking between Izzy and Bridgette. "How... could you possibly-"

"You've had a lot of subconscious animosity towards her," Izzy continued, gently stroking her new cat as she talked. "I don't know if you're aware of it, you probably aren't since most people aren't, that's why it's subconscious. Anyway, you've been directing your hatred at Bridgette because she reminds you of someone that's hurt you.

"And I'm going to take a wild guess, but I'm guessing this person who was like Bridgette also did something like date your friend, which drove you two apart."

Duncan made a sound like someone about to throw up. Owen put him down, in fear that he would, and the punk fell down on one knee. He looked like someone had punched him in the gut, hard.

"Man, Izzy...," he muttered, "how did you know?"

"Oh, psychological guess, really."

"It was a girl like Bridgette," Duncan admitted, staring down at the floor. "Same damn ponytail and hair color, same attitude, so much like surfer girl there. She was my first girlfriend."

Courtney knelt down next to him and rubbed his back as he continued to confess. "What I did to land in juvie, she completely blew out of proportion. She made it sound ten times worse, and when I wound up in the little slammer, she started dating my best friend."

"Ouch," Cody, Trent, and Tyler all remarked at the same time.

"Man, I didn't even think of it that way," he admitted. "I mean, I knew there was some reason why I didn't like Bridgette, but-"

"I'm not your ex-girlfriend," Bridgette spoke up, scowling at Duncan, "and I don't expect to be treated that way. So just leave me alone, and I guess, everything will be cool."

Bridgette walked away from the others, and to Izzy. "Where were you, Izzy?" she asked, looking concerned but still red in the face. "I was really worried."

"Just had to clear my mind," Izzy chirped, sounding way too mellow to be normal for it to be Izzy. "Got me a new cat."

Without another word, she headed up to her room, leaving the other fifteen wondering what was wrong with her, and where she got that cat.

* * *

Ezekiel wasn't allowed any more calls, as Chris thought the good news that Izzy was safe at Playa des Losers 2 would brighten his spirits. And nothing was worse to him than the campers being happy. So he forbid phone calls from Playa des Losers 2 or home for everyone, making up the excuse that since they were all nearing the finals, it wasn't going to be allowed for outside help to come in.

The prairie boy spent the free day alone, lost in his thoughts. All he could think about was Izzy, and what he was going to do. He thought about what to say to her, what to do.

"_I need to knoo' the truth behind what's disturbing her, eh,_" he thought as he stared down at the ground. "_Whatever it is may be really painful for her, but she has to trust me. I love her, I wouldn't turn her doo'n._

_But what if it's something really, really bad?_" another part of him thought. "_What if what is bothering her is so bad, it changes how you see her, eh? What if it's a crime she committed, what if her family history is less than ethical, what if... what if she has habits that are private and are really off-putting?_"

Ezekiel covered his face in his hands as he considered this. "_I've knoo'n her for some time, but not as long as it should be, eh. What am I going to do if it's something really bad or immoral or-_

"_Stop thinking like that, eh,_" he mentally screamed at himself. "_This is your girlfriend! You've trusted her with your thoughts, your beliefs! She's helped you, she's bin kind and sweet and everything you could ever want! She's trusted you with herself, physically and mentally, how dare you let your faith in her wane!_"

He pulled his toque down over his eyes. "_Then why doesn't she trust me with this, eh? Why can't she be open a'boot what she's hiding from me, something so bad that she'll run off without a single word to me?_

"_I doo'nt knoo', but you have to have faith that your girlfriend isn't doing this because it's an evil thing, she's doing it because she's afraid she'll lose you._"

* * *

The next challenge was the following day, and Ezekiel wasn't feeling any better. The stress and emotional burden that he still didn't know if Izzy was safe or not kept him from keeping focus.

Now he knew how Trent felt, how Gwen felt. This gut-wrenching, awful feeling that seemed to keep him from doing anything except breathing in and out.

Chris was delighted in seeing this, and kept pulling Andrea close to her, subtlety bragging that he had his girl with him and Ezekiel didn't. The prairie boy noticed this, but it only turned his stomach to see Tyler's mom and the sadistic host parading about like that.

"Now there are only seven of you, it's time to kick this contest's danger up a notch," Chris said as he looked at the remaining competitors. "And this next one is based off of one of my favorite movies: the ocean movie!"

This confused the campers, except for Beth. "Oh, like The Little Mermaid," she exclaimed, smiling.

"No," Chris barked, and Beth was instantly downtrodden. "I'm talking about movies with large, man-eating, sea creatures! Sharks, octopi, mutated sea people, and all other kinds of things!"

It turned out that the challenge was not actually as thrilling as that, but just as dangerous. The seven contestants were put on a suspended platform over a very large water tank, and were armed with fishing poles and supplies.

"Your job is to catch a great big fish or other ocean creature," Chris said, grinning as he looked at Andrea, who was wearing a small bikini. "Once you catch one, Chef Hatchet will judge it to see if it's worthy."

Chef Hatchet looked surprised; he obviously had not been informed he would. "What about you?" he snarled at the host.

"Dude, I got me a babe in a bikini," Chris said, grinning wickedly. "I'll be taking a break during this episode too! I may love the camera, but I love bikini babes more!"

As Chris Maclean and Andrea walked off, the contestants and Chef glared at him.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - The Jaws of the Waterworld)**

**Heather** - \She is rubbing her head. Her hair is starting to grow out, and looks like a very short cut.\ "Well, this may be a lame challenge, but I can deal with that; at least it's not humiliating!"

**Harold** - "Is this it? Fishing? I mean, I fished in Possum Scouts, but I didn't go deep-ocean fishing!"

**Justin** - "This challenge sounds like a last-minute idea. Methinks Chris just wants more time with that bimbo. And man, she's got implants, that's so not beautiful; only natural beauty counts, not silicon and surgery!"

**Leshawna** - "I hate fishing! My uncle once took me, and all I got was a few hook stabbings, fishing cramps, and a fish slipped down the front of my shirt! One of the worst days of my life."

**Ezekiel** - \He rubs his toque, looking thoughtful and sad.\ "I wonder if Izzy's ever bin fishing..."

**Chef Hatchet** - \He pounds his fists on the counter.\ "Pretty boy's playing me, I know he is! I still haven't been paid, and he's practically made me host! Oh, he'll pay for this, how he will pay!"

* * *

Leshawna was a snit-fit over fishing, obviously not keen to repeat unpleasant memories. Harold was very quickly all over it, helping her prepare her fishing hook, how to hold the rod, and what to do if she caught something. His hands were constantly holding hers, cupping them and gripping to show how to do it.

She would have protested, if for some bizarre reason, it wasn't making her heart pound. Leshawna had no idea how gentle he could be.

Heather tried to get Harold to help her too, but DJ was on it. The queen bee was surprised by this, but accepted it anyway. Beth was helping Justin, as the male model claimed he had no idea what to do (he didn't, and he didn't want to stab his beautiful fingers with a hook).

Ezekiel was left alone, glumly sitting on the side of the platform with the fishing pole in his hands. He stared down at the water, still thinking about Izzy. Luckily for him, fishing was the perfect thing to do when deep in thought.

Chef Hatchet sat nearby them, glaring at Chris Maclean's trailer. The more he brooded, the madder the already-mad man got. When he caught a glimpse of Andrea and Chris groping each other, his anger heightened.

It began to show in his judgment. He turned down the first three catches, done by Harold, Beth, and Heather. Harold's catch being turned down surprised most of them, since it was a pretty large fish.

"Gosh," Harold said as he threw the fish back. "Fine, whatever! I'll just keep catching fish until I find one big enough for you!"

He actually did just that. Harold was nearly yanked off the platform by his next catch, but Leshawna and DJ grabbed him for support. Soon, after tough reeling, Harold's catch was revealed: one of the man-eating sharks.

"You pass, you pass," Chef Hatchet screamed, getting far away from the thrashing shark. "Throw that huge son of a bitch away!"

The shark glared at Chef, putting his flippers on its sides in a pouting stance before Harold cut his line. He grinned in triumph and thumped his chest.

Chef's anger rose when he saw Chris and Andrea thrashing in their trailer, only silhouettes as the curtains were drawn. His anger grew to a fervor pitch, then it snapped.

"Contestants, any little fish you catch," he growled at them, "put in this bucket here."

This confused them, but they did so anyway. The remaining six caught a bunch of small fish, all turned down by Chef, but put in the bucket.

Heather caught an octopus, a small one but rather impressive. She grinned triumphantly at Leshawna, and then, as if the octopus knew about karma, the eight-legged beast sprayed ink all over the queen bee's face.

As the campers and Chef laughed, she dropped the octopus in the bucket and glared at the large cook. "Do I pass or what?"

"Yeah yeah, whatever, Baldy."

"My hair is growing back," Heather snapped, then sulked on the corner of the platform, away from the others.

After a load more of small fish and a couple crabs, some of the others caught winners. Beth caught a lobster that clamped onto Ezekiel's toque and hair, and they struggled to make it let go. Leshawna, with Harold's help, caught a barracuda, scaring the hell out of all of them. DJ's first catch was declared a win, which surprised all of them since it was the puniest fish caught that day.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - The Hunt for Splash & Commander.)**

**Heather** - "Chef Hatchet practically gave DJ that victory! They're up to something, and it ain't right!"

**Leshawna** - "Man, that challenge was full of scares, the bait smelt _awful_, and DJ won with a fish smaller than Heather's brain! But still..." \she smiles, almost coy\ "Harold was a sweetheart out there."

**Ezekiel** - "The fish weren't biting for me... maybe they realized that I'd get voted off, since it's doo'n to Justin and me. Suits me, I want off this shoo' so I can go find Izzy."

* * *

The seven campers were gathered around the trailer grounds, talking among themselves. Ezekiel and DJ were chatting about home and family, Heather was contemplating by herself, Leshawna and Harold were exchanging glances, and Beth was admiring Justin.

The quiet was violently broken when there were two screams, one high-pitched. Chris Maclean and Andrea came running from his trailer, both soaking wet and completely naked. A fish had wedged into Andrea's hair, and Heather's octopus was wriggling in Chris's hair.

The seven contestants stared with wide eyes and open mouths in shock, watching the two adults run past them screaming.

"Whoa," Harold remarked when they were gone, "they just ran by us... naked."

"Y-yeah," Leshawna added.

"On reality TV."

"Yeah."

"In front of millions of viewers."

"YES," Leshawna cheered. The others all burst out laughing and cheering as well. They missed Chef Hatchet walk by towards the cafeteria, holding a bucket in his hands, grinning happily.

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - The Perfect Poseidon.)**

**Chef Hatchet** - "Haha! Payback's a bi-"

* * *

At the Awards Ceremony, the seven campers were seated and waiting patiently for Chris Maclean. The host wasn't there yet, while Chef, wearing his glittery, pink dress, was holding a tray with six Gilded Chris Awards.

"Where is he? Still recovering from his naked, fishy run?" Leshawna asked the others, smirking.

"As disturbing as that was, those two so deserved it," Harold agreed.

Ezekiel and Justin, the only ones that were votable, exchanged glances. The male model grinned triumphantly, and the prairie boy looked down at the ground; he knew he was defeated, who would vote off Justin instead of him?

When Chris Maclean did come up on the stage in his nice suit, he was frowning darkly. The contestants couldn't help but chuckle, and reached for their voting devices.

"Hold it right there, contestants," Chris barked. "There has been a disqualification!"

All of them were shocked, and Justin was the first to protest. "Hey whoa, wait man," he declared, holding up his hands, "we had nothing to do with that prank that was pulled on you!"

"Prank nothing," Chris snapped. "I'm talking about the illegal alliance between Chef Hatchet and one of the contestants, and since Chef has been judging things of late, he's been giving this great contest away!"

Chef Hatchet blanched, almost dropping the tray of trophies. He opened his mouth to speak, but Chris cut him off. "So instead of voting, the person Chef Hatchet has been helping out is out! Gone! And good riddance!

"DJ, you know I'm talking about you! Get out of here!"

DJ looked very downtrodden as the others looked at him in astonishment. "DJ, you?" Leshawna asked.

"You've been cheating? You, of all people?" Beth gasped.

"I never asked Chef to do it, he just started doing it," DJ admitted. "And he wouldn't stop, so I just accepted his offer to help make a man out of me. Guess it was a real mistake."

"I meant every word," Chef Hatchet declared, throwing the tray of chocolate trophies away. "DJ, I can still make you a real tough man! I never meant for you to get voted off, but let me give you one last tip of advice: don't cry, man!"

The gentle giant took a deep breath, then nodded. He managed to smile, and waved at the others. "Bye guys. Best of luck to all of you."

He walked by Heather as he left the stands, and stopped briefly to affectionately tap her under the chin. "Especially you, sweetheart."

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Blue Crushing Lagoon.)**

**Heather** - \completely shocked\ "... Most surprising day ever... wow."

**Leshawna** - "I never thought DJ could be that type of guy. I mean, of all people, of all things, of all circumstances... to like _Heather_?"

**Chef Hatchet** - "Hehe, he took my advice with the chin. Smooth, DJ, really smooth. Wonderful too. I'm... really gonna miss the big guy..." \He sniffs, then bursts into tears.\

**Harold** - "My good-bye to Leshawna last season was more romantic."

**Ezekiel** - "I'm pretty sure Chris knew a'boot that secret alliance between DJ and Chef fur some time now, but he didn't do anything a'boot it because it would cause dray'ma. So when Chef embarrassed him, he decided to pull that plan 'oot of the socket. ... If that's the expression."

* * *

That night, Leshawna caught Ezekiel staring up at the night sky. She walked over and sat down next to him, clearing her throat to catch his attention.

"Thinking about Izzy, white boy?" she asked, smiling at him.

He nodded, and said, "It's all I can think of, eh. I'm really woo'ried a'boot her, I doo'nt like how I doo'nt knoo' how she is doing."

"I'm sure she's back at Playa des Losers, hon. But hey, hon, do you knoo'... um, know why she's upset?"

"Not specifically, but I knoo' it's something big that's really bothering her."

"This is Izzy we're talking about, white boy. It might something really disturbing."

"She's still a human being, Leshawna," he replied, blunter than she thought was possible from him. "Whatever it is is causing her pain, and I want to help her 'oot. I knoo' most of you doo'nt think much of her, but she's very special to me!"

"Okay, okay," she replied, holding her hands up in defense. "You convinced me! Damn, you've changed since I last saw you, though I didn't even really see you back then."

Ezekiel nodded, then looked back up at the sky. "Say Leshawna, are you and Harold seeing each other yet?"

"What? No! What makes you think that?"

"You two were really happy with each other during the ocean contest. Why doo'nt you two start dating?"

"Ezekiel, I don't think it'd work between us. We're really different, do you think that it would work?"

They stared at each other for a few seconds, and Ezekiel began to smile. "You're asking me that?"

"What?"

"I'm the home schooled, prairie boy who's dating the eccentric redhead, eh!"

Leshawna realized how foolish her question had been, and laughed. "Oh, white boy, you got me there. Look, I'll make a deal with you."

"What's that, eh?"

"When it's time for you to go, you find out what's bothering Izzy. And in return, I'll give Harold another chance."

"Okay, eh!"

Leshawna attempted to do a handshake with Ezekiel, but the amount of hand slapping and fist bumping was perplexing to him, and she had to teach him how to do all the extra stuff.

* * *

Two days later, the next challenge sounded promising for being voted off: the last man standing movie. Chris explained this, because most of the contestants didn't know what he was talking about.

"See, there are a lot of movies about assassins, hunters, criminals, or supernatural movies. Think of them as horror movies where everyone is getting killed off, but instead, it suited to set a different type of genre."

Harold was nodding, while all the others exchanged confused glances.

"So," Leshawna spoke up, "what's the deal?"

"You are all armed with these," Chris said as he held up a paintball gun and a plastic toy machete. "You are going to hunt down your fellow contestants, and the last man standing wins immunity!"

Heather sighed as she tucked a short strand of hair behind her ear. Her hair was finally growing back, and was now down to the top of her neck. She was still unhappy about it, and wished that she had Lindsay and Gwen to shoot here.

"You all will start off in different lots, and then the hunt will begin," Chris said as Chef Hatchet passed out paintball guns and fake machetes. "You are out if you are shot three times, or struck with a machete."

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - The Most Dangerous Kombat.)**

**Beth** - "I don't think I'm cut out for a violent challenge like this. Well, maybe if I saw Heather, I could shoot her again." \She cackles.\

**Ezekiel** - "There's no way I could win this challenge, so I'm sure I'll be voted off tonight, eh! Izzy, I'm going to see you soon!"

**Heather** - "There are only six people left, and I'm pretty sure, no matter how lame this challenge is, I can win it."

* * *

Leshawna started off in the western set; Justin in the fake, demolished town; Harold at the top of the fake cliff; Ezekiel at the trailer lot next to the Dressing Cam; Beth at the fake Titanic ship; and Heather near the entrance to the alien set.

"Alright people," Chris declared over the intercom that reached every corner of the film lot, "I want a good hunting! Let the slaughter begin now!"

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - The Wanted Man Standing.)**

**Ezekiel** - "Well, to put a long story short, things didn't go as well as planned. All I knoo' is that I was wandering the film lot for what felt like hours, probably was, eh. And then when I saw someone else, I was anxious to start a fight and possibly get eliminated. But even that didn't go as planned, eh."

* * *

Ezekiel peered around the corner of a fake building, and saw a very curious scene. Heather was standing over Beth, the farm girl on her knees. The prairie boy squinted for a better look, and realized Beth was crying.

"Stop denying the obvious, Beth," Heather was saying, poking her with the barrel of her paintball gun; Ezekiel also know Beth was stained with red paint. "You really need to get real. Justin doesn't like you, he doesn't care about you one bit."

"That's... that's not true," Beth wailed. She looked like she was trying hard not to cry, but couldn't help herself. "Justin says... says I'm special."

"Yeah, special ed," Heather scoffed. "He's the one who shot you twice before I got you, right? Well guess what, Beth? Like I said, Justin's using you, and I'm telling you this for two reasons. One is that I want to expose him, so that you have the sense to vote him off.

"And two, I love seeing you suffer. You really deserve it, you pathetic stump of a wannabe."

Beth sobbed, and Ezekiel felt him temper get the better of him. He charged out from where he was hiding, shooting wildly at Heather. She was hit five times, one on the butt and one in the back of the head, staining her hair.

"Ow ow ow," Heather shrieked, thrashing as she tried to avoid the barrage. "What the hell?! Ezekiel!"

Beth watched with bloodshot eyes, then she giggled. "Way to go, Ezekiel."

"Kind of... lost myself there, eh," he admitted, scratching the back of his head.

The intercom blared, and Chris's voice boomed out. "Attention campers, we have a winner! Please report to the trailer lot!"

The six contestants took a few minutes for all of them to get there. Chris Maclean, Andrea, and Chef Hatchet were there already, and only the host looked pleased; Andrea and Chef had not smiled ever since the ocean challenge.

"Congratulations, Ezekiel," Chris declared. "You won this challenge!"

"What?" Ezekiel shouted, then looked at the others. Sure enough, the other five had paint splattered on them, and Harold had a bruise on his arm (he later told the others that he and Leshawna had got in a machete fight, and he lost).

The prairie boy started to protest, then Andrea spoke up. "Yuck. The ugly redneck won? How tacky."

That fury came back to Ezekiel, and he took a shot at her with his paintball gun. He had just been planning to shoot and miss to scare her, but he hit her. Right in the throat.

As Tyler's mom fell to her knees, clutching her neck and heaving for breath, the contestants and Chef Hatchet burst out laughing. Ezekiel whimpered.

"Whoops," he whimpered. "Soo'ry."

* * *

**(Dressing Cam - Lost Runner.)**

**Ezekiel** - "I think I've bin a little temperamental ever since I've bin stuck on the shoo' with'oot Izzy. I miss her so much... and I overreact to insults now." \He glares at the camera.\ "And Heather is the mistress of insults, and she's going to get it fur how she treated Beth."

**Beth** - "I really am tougher than that, but I kind of lost it. Heather told me Justin was just using me, and the thought of it really hurt me more than I cared to. I'll get her for that, for planting lies in my head!"

**Justin** - "So Heather thinks she can twist a knife in my back, get me voted off instead of her? Well, she really should have known that I have these people eating out of my hand. You should know you catch more flies with honey, queen bee. Good bye, good riddance." 

* * *

Heather snarled at the others as the last Guilded Chris Award was thrown to Beth instead of her. "You people are morons, you know that?" she shouted. "I hope you all rot in hell."

"Love you too," Justin called to her, waving.

"Now shoo, queen bee, don't bother us no mo'," Harold shouted. He and Leshawna exchanged a high five.

Heather left with her nose stuck up, and slammed the door on Chef's fingers when he opened it for him.

* * *

Heather approached Playa des Losers 2 with her nose upturned. She was prepared for insults and gibes, but she was ready to blow them off.

What she was not expecting was for Duncan and Eva to grab her arms, Lindsay wrapping her arms around her legs. She struggled to break free, and began screaming.

"Let go of me, you psychos," she shrieked. "I'll sue all of you! How dare you touch me!"

"Oh, Heather!"

The singsong voice of Gwen alerted her attention. Cody was handing his goth girlfriend an electric razor, and she was approaching the queen bee with a daunting strut.

"We saw how you treated Beth today," Gwen said, pointing at her with the razor. "Also, the way you treated Izzy, Lindsay, and everyone else."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh, I dare."

The buzz of the electric razor approached her, and Heather saw the moving blades near her head. She let out a bloodcurdling scream as the buzzing instrument touched her hair.

* * *

The next challenge was two days after the last man standing challenge. Ezekiel was nearly pulling his hair out in desperation of being voted off.

"I doo'nt want to win the million dollars, I never wanted the money," he declared to Leshawna and Harold. "I want to see Izzy, eh! It's bin too long with'oot a word on her."

The challenge was a detective, and the contestants had to investigate the "murder" of Chef Hatchet, who had been "stabbed" to death with a spatula. Justin and Beth worked together, but neither of them were on the trail well. Leshawna preferred to work alone, and Ezekiel's heart was off pining for Izzy rather than participating.

Harold was all aglow with pride. "I'm not only a big fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle," he bragged to Leshawna, "but I also love the Hardy Boys, Encyclopedia Brown, Detective Conan, and the Phoenix Wright series! I can guess who the murderer is right away!"

Eventually, he did. The murderer, due to clues found in unusual places (the underwear drawer in the girls' trailer, in Chef's mystery meat, in Chris' back pocket), turned out to be Katie.

"Always who you least expect," Katie declared as she leapt from her hiding place in front of the others.

"Damn, I let her kill me?" the fake corpse known as Chef Hatchet groaned.

"Thanks for helping out, Katie," Chris said to her as she left. "Okay people, vote for who you all want to go next, then we'll be down to four! Harold has immunity, so take your pick!"

* * *

They voted off Ezekiel. With a quick wave and good-bye to the others, the prairie boy hurried into the Lame-o-Sine.

"You seem to be in such a hurry, and excited for someone who just got voted off," said Katie, who was seated in the back. "That anxious to see Izzy?"

"You bet I am! Is she okay, eh? She alright?"

"She's fine, she came back to Playa des Losers 2 the day after she disappeared. Got a new kitty, she calls it 'Zekitty'!"

Katie giggled, and clapped her hands. "It's so cute! A little dirty, but only Izzy is brave enough to give a cat a bath! Well, Sadie's been helping."

"Speaking of which, where is she, eh? I thought you two were inseparable."

"Oh, we are, but she's spending a little more time with Trent."

The rest of the limousine ride was mostly Katie talking a mile a minute. When they finally arrived at Playa des Losers, Ezekiel felt completely jaded. Still, he found the energy to run into the hotel.

Only Noah and Eva were in the lobby when he entered, and both barely gave him a nod as acknowledgment. He didn't pass anyone else on his way up. Ezekiel hurried to her room, and knocked on the door.

"Izzy, it's me, Ezekiel," he shouted. "Are you there?"

When no answer was given, he let himself in because her door was unlocked. Her room was still messy as ever, and Ezekiel very briefly wondered if she could be hiding. Realizing that was stupid, he collapsed on her bed.

"Where are you, Izzy?" he asked aloud, though no one was there to hear. He fell back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.

His mind spun as he considered where his girlfriend could be. Katie said Izzy was back at the resort, but she wasn't in her room. Was she somewhere else at the resort? Did she know he had been voted off?

Ezekiel soon felt a wave of exhaustion, one that came from almost a week of stress and worry over her. He hadn't slept well, and now was really feeling the effects.

"_I cannot fall asleep now, eh,_" he thought. "_Not that I finally get to see her a'geen! Izzy... Izzy..._"

He lasted a couple more minutes before he fell asleep.

* * *

**End of Part 13.**

* * *

Awfully short, eh? If it was too fast-paced, let me know; I just wanted to get Ezekiel out of the show so that the real story could continue.

Well, the next chapter is the answer to all the questions you've had. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, no matter how not-so-lengthy it was!


	14. What's Bin Bothering Izzy

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - No descriptive sexiness here, but there are a few words to watch out for.

Oh, and new poll in my profile.

* * *

**Chapter 14** - Ezekiel Can Handle the Truth

* * *

Izzy was not in the hotel at the time of Ezekiel's arrival. She was out buying some cat food and a litter box for her new pet. Zekitty wasn't a picky eater, much to her surprise.

"I'm lucky I picked up a stray, because after rummaging through trash all his life, he's probably glad to have real food," she said to the boy at the counter; he wasn't particularly interested in what she was saying, because it made no sense.

When Izzy came back to the hotel and her room, she was startled to see her boyfriend asleep on her bed. So surprised, she dropped everything in her arms, including Zekitty.

The orange-and-white cat, after landing on his feet of course, padded over to the bed and snuggled up to Ezekiel immediately. It had been his place to sleep when Izzy slept there, and so it was no difference who the human was to Zekitty. Izzy was very glad to see this.

"Zekitty likes Zeke," she whispered to herself. She began to approach Ezekiel herself, but then she looked down at herself. Izzy had not showered in a couple days, too busy with cat care and avoiding some of the other ex-contestants.

"_Might want to shower first_," she thought, shrugging her shoulders as she headed towards her bathroom.

The sound of the shower didn't wake up Ezekiel, and neither did Zekitty snuggling up to him and purring. Izzy's loud singing (she had forgotten about her boyfriend sleeping in her room) didn't wake him either. Even screaming Bon Jovi lyrics in unbridled Izzy fashion wasn't enough to wake the zonked prairie boy.

After her shower, Izzy dressed in a white bathrobe, only wearing a pair of panties underneath. She combed her tousle of red hair, but it didn't really with her curls. Stepping out of the bathroom, she was surprised to see Ezekiel was still sleeping.

"_Jeepers, did he take sleeping medication?_" she thought to herself. Picking up Zekitty and putting him in his new cat bed, she sat down next to her boyfriend.

Izzy barely touched Ezekiel's face, and he woke up with a start. He woke to saw his girlfriend smiling at him.

"You're one of those kinds, huh?" she asked. "All the noise in the world cannot wake you up, but one touch and you're-"

She was cut off when Ezekiel hugged her tight. He let out a strangled sob, which startled her more than the sudden hug did.

"Izzy," he cried, holding her close to him. "Oh God, I was so woo'ried a'boot you!"

"Zeke, I was here at the hotel most of the time-"

"But Bridgette called me the night you were voted off, and told me you didn't shoo' up at the plaza! I wasn't allowed any moo'r calls after that, and... and..."

He cupped her face and kissed her, so passionate that Izzy swooned into his mouth. When he released her, she saw the tears in his eyes; Izzy felt her heart break at the sight of his pain.

"Please doo'nt woo'ry me like that a'geen," he begged her.

"My Zeke," she whispered, "I... I wasn't going to do anything bad... I only got myself a kitty."

He kissed her again, pulling her to him and holding him in the most loving embrace Izzy had ever experienced. Her breaking heart melted, feeling more secure and loved than any other point in her life. If she died right now, she would have died content.

"I love you, Izzy," Ezekiel whispered to her. "Please... doo'nt run off like that a'geen. Promise me."

"I promise," she said, and kissed him back. After the kissing, she took a deep breath, then wrinkled her nose.

"Um, Zeke, I love this and all, but... when was the last time you had a shower?"

Ezekiel blushed. "I... doo'nt remember, eh. I was so concerned..."

"Eww. Well, you gotta go shower now. Like I did, see?"

She ran a hand through her wet, red hair. Then, much to his surprise, she untied her sash and pulled down her bathrobe. Her skin, soft and glowing still, was a beautiful sight for him to behold; however, it was her naked breasts that really caught his attention.

Now Ezekiel was very red, and he was desperately trying not to stare, but failing miserably. She was so beautiful and sexy, especially after his time apart from her, that his hormones were now in control.

"I guess this could be my way of apologizing," she whispered, then reached over to him. "Here, let me help you get ready for yours."

She pulled his jacket and shirt off, and he only realized what she was doing when she unbuttoned his jeans. Helping him stand up, she unzipped them too.

"Izzy," he breathed.

"I think another way of apologizing," she purred, kissing his neck, "is for us to get to third base."

Just before Izzy pulled down Ezekiel's jeans, Tyler came into her room. "Hey Izzy," he said as he came in, "Ezekiel got voted off, so you might want to-"

He stopped, right as Izzy dropped her boyfriend's pants. The topless redhead and the brunet in his underwear froze.

"Oops," Tyler remarked, trying not to stare at Izzy's breasts. "Sorry!"

"Oh for fuck's sake," Izzy shouted, shaking her fist at the jock as he left, "can't we get a moment of peace?"

* * *

**(The next morning.)**

The next morning, everyone was seated at breakfast. Izzy was draped over Ezekiel, gabbing on about Zekitty and asking him all kinds of questions about TDA.

Noah and Eva were seated with Geoff and Bridgette. The surfer girl had insisted to stay away from Duncan, because she was still upset over the ordeal beforehand.

"I still think you should have kicked his ass," Eva said to Bridgette.

"Meh, I just want to stay away from him," she said, shrugging.

Noah grunted and leaned back, then he noticed Izzy and Ezekiel out of the corner of his eye. "Whoa, those two might reach second base in front of all of us."

"It's really nice, actually," Geoff said, chuckling. "Those two look, like, so happy."

Eva grunted. "Whatever. That public display of affection nauseates me."

"C'mon, bra," the party animal protested. "They're in love, they're a couple. Why not snuggle and kiss?"

"Because it's pathetic to do it in front of others!"

Noah looked away, obviously disagreeing but not wanting to protest in front of his hostile girlfriend.

"Why don't you two?" Geoff asked, grinning at him. "C'mon, it's fun to make out."

She growled at Geoff, and the party animal backed away. Bridgette had been staring at her, and she finally asked what was on her mind.

"Eva, why did you and Noah keep your relationship a secret?"

The fitness buff was startled, then she frowned and looked away. Noah was still not looking at anyone or anything in particular.

"Yeah, now that I think about it," Geoff started to say, and Bridgette felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up; she knew it was going to flub this big time. "Why didn't you say anything? You two embarrassed or something?"

Eva's eye twitched. She stood up, her fingers curling dangerously. Bridgette grabbed her boyfriend's arm, hoping Eva wouldn't kill him when she was holding him.

Noah spoke up then. "It's probably because of me," he said nonchalantly. "After all, you think my Iron Woman would want people to know that she's dating me?"

"Stop that," Eva growled.

"Dude," Geoff said, looking over at Noah, "what, you think she's ashamed of you? But she's dating you!"

The bookworm shrugged, and then jumped when Eva slammed her fists on the table. She was glaring at Geoff and Noah as she sat down in her seat.

"I'm not ashamed of him at all," she growled, then stared down at the ground as she continued to say, "it's me."

"What?" Bridgette asked. She was baffled, because she couldn't believe Eva having self-esteem issues.

"Look, Noah comes from a big family," Eva grumbled. "His father's a college professor, his mom's a lawyer, and all of his siblings have or are graduating. All of them intellectuals, including Noah here.

"And then there is me," she said with a heavy sigh, "the physical one. I'm not dumb, but I'm not a college person. And if word gets out to his family, the first thing they're gonna do is call him up and tell him, 'What are you thinking?'"

Eva continued to stare at the floor, looking more vulnerable than anyone could have ever imagined from her. The awkward silence was broken by Noah.

"Well, to hell with them, then."

The three others at the table looked at him in surprise. "They never held any interest in my life," Noah said, a sly but bitter smile on his face. "No matter my hobbies or goals or accomplishments, they never noticed me. So if now they try to get involved and tell me who I should and shouldn't date, then I'll give them a right piece of my mind; and let me tell you, a piece of my mind will knock anyone flat."

Noah put his hand on Eva's. "Eva, I like you, and I don't care if my family doesn't approve of you. I want you, and that's that."

Eva looked ready to cry, her smile and eyes glowing. She grabbed Noah's shirt collar, and pulled him to her, kissing him fervently. Geoff cheered loudly, then Bridgette slapped her hand over his mouth.

"Kind of funny," the party animal whispered after she removed her hand; he was watching the couple make out with an approving eyes. "They kept their relationship a secret, and they didn't even know why."

Bridgette chuckled, looking away from the kissing couple. She noticed Ezekiel was sitting alone, looking a little dejected. Excusing herself from the table and Geoff, she walked over and tapped the prairie boy's shoulder.

"Heyas, Zeke," she said, "where is Izzy? I thought she was with you?"

"She said she had to go get something," he said, "but she looked really upset. I think she overheard part of Eva and Noah's conversation, or something, but..."

He sighed, resting his head in his arms on the table. "I doo'nt understand, Bridgette. One minute she's so happy and carefree and pleased to me, the next she looks like she's struck with tragedy, eh."

Bridgette sat down next to him. "Ezekiel," she said, quiet and soft, "maybe it's time you ask her what's bothering her."

"How do I do that, eh?"

"You ask her to tell you, and you won't take no for an answer," Bridgette instructed him. "You need to know, before something really bad happens. That time where she didn't show up here, we were frantic to find her, and I know you were upset, right?"

"I was a nervous wreck at TDA," Ezekiel admitted, "if you didn't see me on the TV."

She nodded. Bridgette remembered how sad he looked during those episodes when Izzy wasn't there, and his desperate confessions inside the dressing room trailer.

"So please, talk to her tonight," Bridgette said. "I really don't want her to run off like that again, I was scared to death."

"I will," he said, nodding. Then he smiled faintly. "Say Bridgette, remember how you agreed to tell me who you also had a crush on if I let you help me with Izzy, eh?"

A trace of pink flush spread across Bridgette's face. She chuckled as she nervously scratched the back of her head. "Um, it was Tyler."

"Oh, really?" Ezekiel looked over to where the jock was. He was sitting alone, looking deep in thought (Ezekiel might not have thought so highly of him right then, because Tyler was thinking of how Izzy's breasts were a lot better than he believed them to be).

"Yeah well, I do have a thing for the athletic kind," Bridgette admitted, "even if he isn't the best, he tries so hard."

"He's bin so doo'n ever since Lindsay left him fur Owen," he noted. "Maybe I should tell him, to cheer him up?"

Bridgette turned cherry red in the face, shaking her head frantically. "No no, Ezekiel, you don't tell people about crushes!"

"Really? Soo'ry, I doo'nt knoo' how these things work, eh."

"Yeah, you're not supposed to tell," she said. "Besides, I don't know how much it would cheer him up, to know a girl who's taken used to have a crush on him."

"I dunno, I think I'd be thrilled to knoo' if a really nice girl ever liked me romantically, eh," Ezekiel admitted, also starting to blush.

* * *

**(Later that night.)**

Izzy was waiting in Ezekiel's room that night. The prairie boy had been looking all over the resort for her, getting worried all over again.

"Izzy," he exclaimed when she glomped him, "I was looking for you, and I couldn't find you-"

"Zeke, I was just getting ready for tonight," she said, giggling.

Ezekiel thought hard, trying to recall anything he might have forgot. The redhead grabbed his jacket, and pulled him towards the bed.

"I wanna make out with you all night long," she gushed, kissing his face. "And maybe more!"

"Izzy, Izzy, Izzy," he declared, trying to push her away. This was rather difficult, because she could struggle when she wanted to, and being kissed by her was something he rather liked. "Wait, Izzy!"

"Wait? Why?" she asked, her impish grin glowing. "Don't you want to make out? We haven't done it in some time!"

"Izzy, I really," he stammered, sitting up, "I... I really want to talk to you."

"Talk?" She blinked, staring at him. "You want to talk? What about?"

"Izzy, please," Ezekiel took her hand in his and squeezed it gently, "tell me what's bothering you?"

Izzy looked even more puzzled. "What's bothering me? Nothing's bothering me right now, can't you tell? I'm happy, I'm with you!"

"You knoo' what I mean," he said, staring into her bright green eyes, "why do you get so upset and leave sometimes, eh? What bothered you that time with Eva in the hot tub, and when you left TDA with'oot even saying good bye?"

Izzy's smile was gone in a flash, and she began to shake. "No," she whispered, "no no no!"

The redhead stood up and headed for the door. Ezekiel grabbed her arm, wrapping his arms around her waist and keeping her close. Izzy began to thrash around, and when the crazy girl wanted to struggle, she really could.

Ezekiel was struck by her flailing arms, kicked in the legs, he even took a couple blows to his face. Her fingernail cut his face, right underneath his right eye. He cried out in pain, but refused to let go.

"No no no," she screamed, reaching for the doorknob. "Please, Zeke, no! Let go of me! You jerk, let me go! I don't... I don't..."

She stopped when she caught a glimpse of dark red. "Zeke... oh God," she whimpered, stopping her thrashing right away. "Oh, I cut you."

Izzy reached up and wiped away the blood. "I'm so sorry, I hurt you. Oh, Zeke... I didn't mean to-"

"Izzy," he said firmly as he grabbed her shoulders. "Please. Please tell me what's bothering you, eh. Because whenever you recall whatever it is, you're not yourself anymoo'r."

She stared into his eyes, panting and gasping for air. "Zeke... if I tell you, you may not love me anymore." "How can you say that, eh?" he exclaimed. "Izzy, please tell me! You have to tell me sooner or later, and I want to knoo' now, eh. Please?"

Izzy hesitated, then took in a deep sigh. "Okay... okay. Zeke, my Zeke... please... I... I never wanted to tell you, or anyone else..."

She sat down on the bed, wringing her hands. Ezekiel sat next to her, his hand on her knee. When she finally was able to talk, her eyes were focused on the floor.

"You know how I told you that my father was a museum curator?" she asked, very soft. "I... I lied.

"He wasn't even a curator, he was just one of the simple jobs, janitorial services. And he lost it years ago. He hasn't had a job in years!"

Izzy shuddered, resting her head on her hands. "I... I was so embarrassed to tell you the truth, about my family. My dad... my dad has been a nobody for years, and... and... my family.

"My family hates me."

Ezekiel squeezed her knee, and whispered, "Izzy, they... they can't hate you, eh. Hate is such a strong word-"

"Well, they can't stand me," she shouted, startling him. "My brother and my sisters, they never want to be with me! Never, and they're ashamed to know me.

"You know, my brother tried to convince everyone at school that we weren't related, and when that didn't work, he tried to convince everyone we weren't from the same parents."

Izzy chewed on her fingers and nails for a few seconds before continuing. "Growing up, my father was at home, drinking beer and watching TV. My mother was always gone, so I tried to find things to pass the time. And the more wild things were, the better it was to distract me.

"My siblings would find any excuse they could to get away from me. You know, I used to work at a movie theater... that one time I told you about throwing the soda can at the manager? That was where I worked, and that's kind of where I got fired."

She stopped, took a couple few breaths, then continued. "I told my siblings they could come to the movie theater I worked at, and I could get them into movies for free. Legally! I could get them free popcorn and soda even!

"And they never came! They never came to watch any movies there, no matter how many movies they saw! And when they fired me from that theater, they started going to that theater!"

Izzy sobbed, grabbing his hands. "I... I know, I know that I am eccentric and stuff, I just want to keep my life more interesting. It's better than staying home with siblings who don't like you and parents who don't notice your existence, until... until..."

It took about a minute for her to speak, breathing in and out deeply. "Zeke, I used to try and get my dad off the couch. I was encouraging him all the time, trying to convince him to get a job or a hobby. I may have overdone it... but I was only trying to help him...

"And he smacked me. Really hard, across the face. My older sister burst out laughing, and I hurried to my room.

"I tried to convince myself that it was my fault, that I had been bugging him for a week, that I was being really annoying. But after some time, I didn't want to think of it as my fault, and I started to get mad at them, and pranking them!"

Izzy clenched his hands, almost hurting him with the amount of pressure. "I couldn't stand it! None of them wanted anything to do with me, they keep tell me how much they cannot stand being in the same house as me! That's why I entered this contest, to get out of the house!

"Oh, they were happy. First time they were proud of me... I get excellent grades, I have so many talents, and the first time they smile at me is when I tell them I'll be leaving for eight weeks.

"I guess that's why... that's why the producers wanted me, because I sent in a couple tapes of how eccentric I was," she said, letting out a weak chuckle. "They wanted the crazy girl, and I am. I just... I just didn't want to be bored!"

She grabbed Ezekiel's jacket and buried her face in his chest. "Zeke, I don't want you to leave me, but how can I blame you? I've lied to you, my family... they not only can't stand me, but... but... they don't like you either!"

Looking up at him, she choked out, "They... they called me that day I yelled at you, right beforehand. My dad called to tell me to stop sneaking back on the set, that I was embarrassing the family. Yeah right, he doesn't even have a job...

"He... he told me to stop seeing you. He said that you weren't good enough, that you were... a loser." She stared at him apologetically. "Can you believe that? He mopes in front of the TV drunk almost every day, and he calls you a loser...

"But my mother thinks the same thing. She was saying all kinds of bad things about you, like if she had psychoanalyzed you thoroughly. She then said I was ruining my life, and that you would be bring me nothing but misery...

"Well, look at who she married," she shouted, her green eyes blazing. "I used to respect my mother... she's so smart and kind and beautiful, she saves peoples' lives... and yet, she's not part of my life."

Izzy covered her face with her hands, her breath ragged. "Zeke... I'm so sorry. I... wish I could have told you the truth, but when told me about how much you loved your family... I knew you wouldn't want me anymore. You love your parents, you are very close to them... why want the messed up girl from the family that doesn't want her?"

She shuddered, heaving back sobs. "That's why I wanted everyone to call me Kaleidoscope, or E-Scope. I wanted to forget about being Izzy. Izzy was the girl who's family hated her, who the others couldn't stand. But I couldn't get people to call me that...

"I've lost it. I know people say that a lot, but I really, really have lost it this time. I won't blame you if... if you don't want me anymore."

Staring down at the ground, she awaited the inevitable rejection. It never came.

Ezekiel wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her close. She nuzzled into his chest, sobbing bitterly. He rocked her gently, stroking her hair.

"Izzy," he whispered, "I want you. I love you. Your family... it must have bin terrible for you, eh."

"Zeke," she sobbed, "my Zeke. I cannot believe this. You still want me?"

"Of course I do, eh."

"But... but what about my family?"

"You're the one I love," he said, holding her close to him. "Maybe one day, they will see the truth. I'll want to talk to them one day, maybe get them to like me. But first... you should meet my parents, eh!"

She managed to smile, and rested her forehead against his. "I want to meet your parents too. I wanna see the prairie, maybe I'll get me a fox as a pet!"

"You already have Zekitty."

"Then he'll have a fox brother! I'll call him Faux, which sounds like 'fox' but is completely different!"

Ezekiel smiled at her, wiping the tears away from her eyes. He cupped her face, and kissed her. She was soon kissing back.

Izzy, after a couple minutes of sweet kisses, started undressing him. Ezekiel didn't notice until they were down to their underwear.

"Izzy," he started to say, and then he noticed she was dangling something in front of his face. It was a small, rectangular package with something circular inside of it. "Um, Izzy, is that a-"

"Yes it is," she gleefully said, wiggling it. "You know, this is kind of the reason I was in your room tonight. Let's have sex!"

She giggled some more, pawing him playfully. She was kissing him when he weakly pushed her away.

"Um, Izzy?" he said, very intrepid and meek. "I... that is, um, Izzy?"

"What is it, Zeke?" she looked at the condom wrapper, and then at him. "Is it not big enough for you?" she asked, looking delighted at the thought.

"Well, it's just that, you remember the time I told you that my parents waited until they were married?"

"Yes, I do."

"I was... kind of going to do the same, eh."

Izzy stared at him, as if she had never seen him before. Then a wide grin spread across her face, and she pounced him. Ezekiel was surprised, and then wondered if he could keep true to what he could just say; being nearly naked with his girlfriend, who was almost as naked and cuddling him, was making it hard to think straight.

"You actually do want to wait for marriage before you have sex? That's so cool, I thought no guys believed in that anymore!"

"Well, I do, eh," he said, very red in the face.

She was soon kissing him, then looked him in the eyes, her green eyes shining happily. "Does that mean... no, that's a little forward..."

"What, my Dizzy Izzy?"

She blushed, and asked, "Does that mean you want to marry me someday?"

Ezekiel had fantazied of marrying Izzy several times, wondering how wild and happy his life could be with her, but he also believed anytime soon would be too soon. "I think that we should keep dating, maybe about a year or two; hopefully we'll be off this show by then."

Izzy giggled. "I'm not a patient girl... but I could try. No, I will; like Yoda says, 'Do or do not, there is no try'."

Kissing his neck, she smiled flirtatiously at him. "So, you want to wait about a year or two before marriage, and you want to wait to have sex for the honeymoon?"

"Yes, eh," he said, petting her hair.

"Can we still go to third base?"

"Okay, but what's third base, eh?"

Izzy grinned, and proceeded to show him.

* * *

**(The next morning.)**

The next day, all of the other ex-contestants were chatting with great gusto. Most of them weren't unaware, but they felt it: the end of the contest was coming up, and they wanted to spend more time together. Izzy and Ezekiel were talking excitedly with Bridgette and Geoff, while many other couples and friends were spending time chatting with friends.

Courtney was busy talking to Duncan. "You're going to be nice to Bridgette for the rest of the contest, you hear me?" she remarked.

"Yeah, whatever," he said, staring down at the floor.

"I'm serious, Duncan! She's my best friend here, and I don't want you being a creep towards her anymore."

"Well, what about you?" he snapped. "Every time I see her with you, you're ragging about something or another."

"I do not!"

"Every. Single. Time."

Duncan's firm words made a bigger impact on her than she thought they would, because she was mentally cycling back to all the times she had recently talked to Bridgette. He was right, she had been lamenting and ranting when she talked to her best friend.

Looking over at the surfer girl, Courtney watched as she, Geoff, Izzy, and Ezekiel talked on about all kinds of things. A certain subject that Izzy startled the CIT, and she was filled with concern.

"Courtney, I'll make a deal with you," Duncan said. "I be nice to Bridgette, and you," he grinned wickedly, almost like Izzy, and whispered something in her ear. She gasped, and pushed him away weakly.

"You ogre, you pig, you... you... you...," she stammered, and then sighed. "Fine, but later tonight, okay? I want to talk to somebody beforehand."

"Alright, Princess!"

Courtney went back to listening in on the two couples' conversation. She wasn't the only eavesdropper, as Tyler was looking at all the couples.

Once the brunet jock noticed Owen and Lindsay, he froze up. He watched as she offered him a donut, and then popped it into his mouth. Giggling, she cuddled his arm as he chewed; he even turned his head and suppressed his belch. She appreciated this effort, and kissed his cheek.

This was more than Tyler wanted to take, and he quietly left the diner. Sitting down in the lounge, he sighed and stared at the floor.

"What's the matter, Tyler?"

He looked up to see Katie staring down at him, a very curious expression on her face. The absolute innocence of it made Tyler feel comfortable enough.

"Well, I just don't like being single right now," he said with a shrug. "Everyone's paired up right now."

"Really?" Katie looked back towards the cafeteria. "I hadn't noticed." He listed off all the couples, tapping his fingers. "Ezekiel and Izzy, Gwen and Cody, Bridgette and Geoff, Lindsay and _him_, Sadie and Trent, Duncan and Courtney, and Eva and Noah.

"Even DJ and Heather are getting along, and the four left on the show still are getting along just fine."

He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "I just... hate feeling out of place, you know?"

Katie sat down next to him, nodding thoughtfully. "Oh, I _know_, right? I have to admit, I was really jealous when Sadie started dating Trent. Felt a little out of place."

"But you are always with her."

"Oh yeah, but all her attention was on him. I've never had Sadie's attention diverted to someone else so much, not even on other dates we've had before!"

She shrugged, then smiled at Tyler. "You know what, though? You and I are the only ones aren't taken."

He nodded, lost in thought, and didn't react until she added, "Maybe that's what the producers planned on. Eleven boys, eleven girls, hoping we'd all pair up."

Tyler finally reacted, and looked at her. "Wait... are you suggesting... we..."

She giggled. "Well, I always did like sporty guys," she said as she patted his hand, and smiled sweetly at him. "What do you say, take a chance on me?"

He stared at her for a few seconds, then smiled back. "Always willing to give someone a chance."

* * *

Ezekiel collapsed on his bed, dead tired. He and Izzy had been chasing Zekitty all over the hotel, as the cat had got out of her room and thought running around would be great fun. The game of chase lasted a couple hours, and had worn out him and even Izzy. She had gone to her room, ready to take a nap.

The prairie boy was about to lie down too when someone knocked on the door. There were only a few people he expected it to be, and Courtney wasn't one of them.

"Hello Ezekiel," she said, sounding very formal. "May I talk to you?"

He really didn't know what to make of this, but was more curious than cautious. "Um, sure."

Courtney walked into the room, and sat down in the closest chair. She smiled pleasantly at him, which only made him more nervous.

"First off, I want to... apologize for the way I've been blowing up at you and Izzy," she said. "I've just been really frustrated with Chris Maclean and his loopholes."

"Yeah, well eh, I think he does mean things on a whim."

"Yes, he certainly does."

Courtney leaned back in her chair and motioned for him to sit down. He felt like he was in for a lecture, and braced himself. Though he had spent very little time with Courtney, he could always hear her when she talked.

"Now," she said once he was seated, "I couldn't help but overhear what you, Izzy, and Bridgette and Geoff were talking about at breakfast today."

"We... talked a'boot a lot of things, eh."

"I overheard the word 'marriage' a few times," she said. "Are you and Izzy planning on getting married?"

Ezekiel blinked. "Um, no. Not in the immediate future, it's just something we mentioned recently."

Courtney nodded, very slightly. "Are you sure you're ready for marriage, Ezekiel?" she asked, clasping her hands together. "Do you know what marriage is about?"

"Well, it's a'boot two people who truly want to spend their lives together," he said, trying to think about his parents' marriage. "It'll be a'boot give and take, a'boot making personal sacrifice for the other, eh. It's a'boot being able to endoo'r each others' habits, and learning how to cope with differences."

She tapped her fingers against her lips. "You know about some of the differences between you and Izzy, right?"

A moment of silence passed between the two before shared a laugh. The CIT smiled and shrugged. "Well, how about family? Do you two know what you plan on having, do you want children?"

"We haven't discussed that, eh," he admitted. "I think we want to concentrate on college and career, eh."

"You two know what you want to do?"

"Somewhat, we both have plans, eh. But it woo'nt start until the shoo' is over."

"True. And what about family in general? I know guys haven't met each other's families yet."

"She's anxious to meet my parents," he said, smiling. Then he thought about his conversation with her last night, and sighed. "Her family, I also am willing to meet. I just hope they doo'nt think too bad a'boot me after the shoo', eh."

Courtney would have remarked about this, but she remembered that everyone on TDI and TDA looked bad, one way or another. She nodded, and said, "You need to be sure if you and Izzy are right for each other. I don't mean to be rude, but you two aren't that, including background and personality."

He smirked at her, much to her surprise. "Oh? What a'boot you and Duncan, eh?"

She flushed, and drummed her fingers together. "Well, um, yeah, that's something for me and Duncan to talk about."

"We've agreed to wait a'boot a year or two, to see if we're really right fur each other, eh," Ezekiel said. "And we'll keep in contact after the shoo' is ovur, eh."

"You can't be afraid to argue or quarrel with her, by the way," she said. "I know you're really cautious, from what I've seen."

Ezekiel was worried that he would ever have to argue with Izzy like Courtney and Duncan did. Maybe that was for show, maybe that was just their way of flirting. He had seen his parents argue, but it wasn't as fervent as those two.

"Also, I don't know what Izzy has been saying," Courtney muttered as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "but about your sex life..."

Ezekiel blushed, and Courtney felt her face flush. He was trying _very_ hard not to think of the time Izzy showed him a recording of the CIT and her boyfriend having sex; thank goodness she didn't know about that.

"Um," she stammered, continuing with an embarrassed smile, "are you two being... careful?"

"Well, I want to wait until marriage fur... um, fourth base?" he said, tapping his fingers together.

Courtney figured that she knew what he was meant by this, but before she could continue, he cut in. "Um Courtney, I doo'nt mean to be rude, but... why are you asking me all these questions, eh?"

"You know that I'm a CIT," she said, matter-of-factly. "As a CIT, I am trained to help couples with their relationships, and even about marriage, if they are considering it."

"Really? Even if you're not married, eh?"

"It's more of a psychological thing. I'm not going say I am a marriage consoler, but I do know what a couple should know before they get married. Many young couples consider getting married too quickly, before they consider things like careers, family, living preferences, or even what they want planned for themselves."

Ezekiel nodded. "I see, eh. So what would you recommend, eh?"

"Since you're taking your time, you also might want to consider that this'll be the last season of Total Drama, and we'll all be on our way home soon. So plan out how you two will keep in contact."

* * *

"See, now this is how you set speed dial for the phone numbers in your address book, my Zeke!"

"Um, what's this thing called 'texting'? Isn't that fur a typewriter, eh?"

"A what?" Katie asked, scratching her head. She and Tyler had gone with Ezekiel and Izzy when they went cell phone shopping.

"Do they only come in silver or pink?" Tyler grumbled as he looked at the demo phones. "C'mon, that's kind of lame."

"Pink is, like, awesome, Tyler," Katie said, smirking at him. "And what's wrong with silver?"

"Silver is just a shiny gray. Get red, red's an awesome color!"

"Pink is like red! It's a light red!"

"People aren't going to think of pink as a light red," Izzy declared as she juggled a few of the phone demos. One of the workers there politely asked her to stop, though she was rather impressed.

"You might want to get unlimited texting, get that with your plan," Tyler said as he looked at a smaller version of the already small phone. "That way, you can text as much as you want."

"Try to get one that has a good camera too," Katie suggested. "That way, you can send great pictures to her."

"It's a phone," whimpered Ezekiel, staring at the demo phone. "I thought they were just fur calling people!"

Katie stared at Ezekiel if she didn't understand where Ezekiel was coming from. Izzy mused aloud, "I want one with a taser. Or a megaphone."

"But what if you accidentally taser yourself when using the megaphone, eh?"

She chuckled, grinning. "That'd be awesome. I'd be like, 'Attention, people of WAAAAAAAAAAH'!"

Everyone in the store jumped and stared at the redhead, who was cackling and pretending to be shocked. She was shouting, "don't call me, bro, don't call me," as Ezekiel tried to calm her down. Tyler said to the people there, "Sorry everyone, she was testing volume."

Izzy giggled when Ezekiel tried to take the phone from her before she did more screaming. She intertwined her fingers with his, the phone in-between their hands. "So, did Courtney have a chat with you too?"

"Um yeah, last night, eh. How'd you knoo'?"

"She talked to me this morning. It was kind of interesting, how this girl who's been so rude to me and protesting my every wild action, like sneaking on the show, was now suddenly concerned about my love life. She almost sounded like a real professional!"

Tyler scoffed, then shrugged. Katie hummed in thought, cocking her head to the side in thought. The jock couldn't help but notice how cute she looked when she did this.

"Kind of funny when she was lecturing me about the etiquette of sex, while I've seen how she's gone at it with Duncan."

Katie and Tyler exchanged confused glances, and she added, "Sorry guys, I deleted that tape."

Ezekiel shook his head, whimpering for her to stop. She simply cooed and clasped their hands together tighter. "But she was right about us keeping in contact when the show is over, my Zeke. This phone, it's like our first real step."

The happy look in Izzy's eyes charmed Ezekiel so much, he completely forgot her fake tasered screaming and her mentioning the sex tape. He pulled her close to her and hugged her tight.

"I love you, my Dizzy-Izzy," he whispered, then kissed her forehead. "But I have one thing to ask you, eh."

"And what would that be, my Zeke?"

"Is there a cell phone big enough so I doo'nt have to use my pinkie in oo'rder to push the buttons?"

Katie sighed and shook her head. "Ezekiel, where have you been with cell phones, oh my gosh!"

"He's been on the prairie," Izzy purred, snuggling her boyfriend, "and I've been waiting for a man like him all the while."

* * *

"No no NO! Get out, out, OUT!"

"Ow ow OW! Okay, God, fine! Don't you know-"

"That you used to be a CIT? Yes, now get the hell out!"

Courtney grunted as Eva shoved her out, even though the CIT was partially out of the room. The fitness buff snarled as she slammed the door, then looked over at her boyfriend. Noah had not looked up from the book he was reading, as he lay down on the bed.

"Nice job, honey," he said, still not looking up but smiling now.

"I really don't need advice on relationships from her, of all people," Eva snarled. "Or from anyone!"

"What about your mom?" Noah asked nonchalantly. "I'm sure she would have some advice."

"That goes without saying," Eva grumbled, sitting next to him. "What about your parents, Noah? They gonna shower you with advice, like, 'Don't date that fitness gorilla'?"

"Then I'd reply, 'Stuff it, she's a lot smarter than that'."

"So I'm smarter than a gorilla, then?" she asked, a small smile appearing on her face.

"I'd say you're more clever than Courtney, and she's the hardcore study-bot, like me."

"That's... one of the nicest things you said to me, Noah."

"Oh, I'm sure I can do better than that, though I don't do compliments often."

Eva took his book in two fingers, and threw it away. She smirked at Noah's surprised look, a look she secretly found really cute because it was so rare.

"Keep them up, and this fitness gorilla might make some monkey love to you."

Noah's eyes widened more, then he grinned. "My, what incentive."

* * *

Late that night, all of them watched the latest episode of Total Drama Action. Heather was the least focused, seated as far away from the others as possible, while still being able to see the screen. DJ sat next to her, but she didn't seem to mind him.

The challenge was a war-theme, courtesy of Chef Hatchet. Justin and Beth teamed up, while Harold and Leshawna both went marine-style solo. Armed with high-powered squirt guns, they fought off many waves of interns dressed as enemy soldiers.

Izzy wasn't particularly amused with the episode. "Those uniforms are styled like American soldiers' uniforms," she grumbled to Ezekiel. "I'm sure Chef Hatchet has some bias."

"What do you care?" Duncan asked. "You're Canadian-Irish, aren't you?"

"My best friend at school is American, and he's, like, the nicest guy I knew," she said, smiling at her boyfriend, "before I met Ezekiel."

"Gag me," Duncan muttered, and Courtney slapped him upside the head.

"Oh, that looks fun," Izzy declared. "Let me try!"

She also slapped Duncan upside the head. The punk thrashed and shouted, "Knock off it, God!"

"Zeke, want to give it a try?"

The episode's ending was certainly dramatic. The rules had been if Chef Hatchet or the interns defeated one of the contestants, they would be eliminated from Total Drama Action. Chef had pinned Leshawna down behind a small sandbag fort, and was closing in.

"I'm coming, Leshawna," Harold had shouted, running in.

He displayed the kind of acrobatics that won him the Dodgeball challenge in TDI, dodging blasts that the large cook shot at him. With one flip over the cook's head, he blasted down on him, drenching him.

"Did you see that?" the nerd declared, pumping his fist and gun into the air. "That was so cool! Leshawna, did you see..."

He stopped when he saw that enemy solders had come around to the other side of Leshawna's fort, and had drenched her. Harold sobbed bitterly when he realized all of his awesomeness had been for naught.

At the awards' ceremony, he, Beth and Justin received their Guilded Chris Awards. Beth and Justin victoriously clinked their trophies, the short farm girl blushing.

"She's really going to regret helping out that creep," Izzy whispered to Ezekiel. "He's just using her."

"Yeah, I've seen enough of his confessions, eh," he muttered, "and what he did to you. I won't forgive him fur, fur a very long time."

"And I used to date him, I still cannot believe I did that," Izzy said with a nod. "You know, he's so completely self-obsessed."

"When did you date him, may I ask?"

"Well, it was during my first visit to Playa des Losers, and I have to admit, I was the one who asked him out."

"You stalked him," Eva snapped at her.

"Oh, I did not. Some _might_ interpret following someone as stalking, but I see it as flattery, since I meant no harm."

"Yeah, right," Heather grumbled. "You, don't mean harm? I'd be surprised if Home School doesn't go home in a body bag."

Izzy began imitating a shaving buzzer, and Heather was quiet immediately. Ezekiel patted Izzy's shoulder and said, "I think he was a fool not to like you."

"Thank you, but since Heather brought up home," she leaned in and whispered to him, "can I please come to your home once TDA is done?"

Ezekiel thought about this for a few seconds. "Tell you what, we'll call them tomoo'row, ask if it's okay, eh."

* * *

Ezekiel had a very long and nice chat with his mother the next day. At first, she was hesitant to have Izzy over at their house. He assured her that they'd get permission from Izzy's family.

"It would be nice to meet her in person," she had said, "because the way you describe her, she sounds completely different than how she acts on TV, eh. Be nice to meet the real Izzy."

"Yes, I knoo' you're going to love her! Oh, and mom? I'm thinking of getting a cell phone."

"One of those? Oh dear, Ezekiel, I doo'nt knoo' a'boot one of those things. They're not... exactly civil, from what I understand, eh."

"Well, it'll only be for Izzy, and maybe some of my other friends here on TD. I could get unlimited texting so that I doo'nt have to always call them and rack up a bill."

"... 'Texting'? What's that, eh?"

"That's when you send a written message via cell phones, eh."

"But isn't the point of a phone to call people, eh?"

He couldn't help but laugh. "Yes, that's exactly what I said to my friends, eh."

After he finished talking to his mother, he waited in the lobby for Izzy. She was calling her won parents in the next room, trying to convince her parents. Ezekiel sat down in one of the comfortable chairs, waiting for her to come in with the news, good or bad. His comfort was quickly disturbed by two young ladies shouting at each other.

"Oh no no no, I _know_ you ain't telling me who I can and can't date!"

"Harold is nothing but a worm! I cannot believe you're considering him, I thought you would know better than that."

"Oh, so now you calling me dumb, white girl?"

Leshawna walked into the lobby room, followed closely by Courtney. Ezekiel wondered if Courtney had gone on a major lecture binge these days, because this wasn't the first time he had seen her arguing with Leshawna.

The startling fact was that Leshawna hadn't even been at PdL2 for a day, and she was already her second argument with Courtney.

"I don't want your so-called advice," Leshawna shouted, her hands on her ears.

"Look, Leshawna," Courtney wasn't letting up, "Harold may this infatuation for you, but that doesn't mean you have to return it!"

"That white boy ain't that bad! You're just overly bitter because... wait, why am I arguing this with you? I don't wanna talk about this with you!"

"Darn it, Leshawna, can't you see that-"

Their argument was cut short when a door slammed shut nearby, startling the two ladies and Ezekiel. Izzy stood near the closed door, heaving deep breaths.

"Izzy?" Ezekiel quickly stood up and headed to her. He couldn't tell if she was mad or sad, but whatever it was, it wasn't good.

"Oh, Zeke," she moaned, looking up at him. She wasn't crying, but she looked close to it. "They... they..."

She let out a shuddering sob and hugged him tight, trembling. "They... she... they completely lost it..."

Izzy clenched his jacket, almost hurting the skin underneath. Leshawna and Courtney had stopped talking, staring at the upset redhead.

"I... I told them that you and I had these plans, and my mother immediately began shouting at me! She was demanding to know... why I hadn't called it off with you yet.

"She wouldn't even listen to me! She kept telling me that dating you was a mistake, and just a phase I was going through, and then... I told them about how I wanted to meet your family after the show was over..."

Izzy took a deep breath, frantically pushing the hair away from her eyes. "She really, _really_ began to shout at me. I couldn't even make out half of the stuff she was yelling."

Ezekiel hugged her, holding her close to him. She was still breathing hard, but calming down in his arms.

"You make me feel so good when you hold me," she whispered to him. "Then again, I've never really been down until I started you, you know that?"

"Aww, c'mon, that sounds terrible, eh."

"Well, I don't remember the last time I cried. Now I'm always crying... I'm one depressed Izzy nowadays."

"I guess that's what they mean by 'love hurts,' right?"

"Silly old saying. Even I think it's silly."

Ezekiel kissed her forehead as he continued to hold her. She sighed, nuzzling his shoulder. He could sense some tough times ahead with her family, and he wondered if they would ever listen to reason. One thing was for certain, they had made the right decision when it came to waiting; even with their own problems, her parents were going to be the hardest.

* * *

**End of Part 14.

* * *

**

We have two chapters here. One is the final chapter, one is an optional one for those who like sexy goodness. \winks\

Don't worry, this'll be a happy ending.


	15. It's All Ezzy From Now On

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - Don't cry. And please please _please_ stop asking me when the sequel to Total Drama Comeback is coming out! I don't know myself.

This chapter has been heavily inspired by one of **Winter-Rae's** stories. If you don't know which one, go read all of them.

* * *

**Chapter 15** - Ezzy Forever and Ever

* * *

Ezekiel nervously fiddled with his tie. No matter how many times he did, he always felt that it was pressing into his throat. The prairie boy swallowed a lump in his throat, only for another one to develop slowly.

"Dude, calm down," Tyler suggested, sitting next to him on the small couch. The jock was flipping through a magazine casually.

"Oh, that's so easy fur you to say, eh," Ezekiel snapped at him, though a faint smile traced his nervous face.

"Hey, I'm the best man. I have to do a good job too, you know. Expectations and everyone staring at me."

"Staring at _you_?"

"Yeah, dude. Don't you know that most people look at the other people when the emotion gets too much?"

Ezekiel never heard of that, nor considered it. The thought of people not staring at him gave a little amount of relief, but he seriously doubted his parents would be staring at Tyler instead of him or Izzy.

"Dude, you're beginning to sweat," Tyler pointed out. "C'mon man, take a few deep breaths. This is a happy day."

"Yeah well, I'm just woo'ried Chris might try something, you knoo'?"

"Duncan, Eva, and I all had a talk with him. If he tries _anything_ at your wedding, dude, we'll castrate him."

"That's a little moo'r than I needed to knoo', but I appreciate it."

"I just find it hard to believe that you and Izzy are going to be the first couple married on Total Drama. I would've put money on Bridgette and Geoff. I mean, didn't you just start dating this girl?"

"It's bin two years since we first started dating, eh. That's why it's today, it's the day she pulled me 'oot of the pool at the second Playa des Losers."

Tyler mused over this. "I hated that second season. That breakup with Lindsay and my mother really were hell."

"But you're still with Katie, right?"

"Oh yeah, dude. Trent and I are doing fine."

"What?"

"Well, it's Katie and Sadie, dude. We probably know more about the other girl than the one we're dating."

Ezekiel chuckled, and his heart leapt when there was a knock on the door. When he saw Justin, he said, "Is everything ready?"

"Not yet, dude," the male model replied. He walked up and patted Ezekiel's head, and the prairie boy swatted desperately.

"Doo'nt do that, do you knoo' how long I was at the barber, trying to get my ugly hair to look good fur today, eh?"

"Ah, you look fine," Justin said, though he stopped patting Ezekiel's head. "By the way, Beth wanted to thank you guys for letting her be flower girl."

"Well, we thought she wouldn't want to be, since the flower girl's usually really young, eh," Ezekiel admitted. "But unfortunately, nobody's siblings were young enough."

"Which explains why Cody's the ring bearer," Tyler remarked. "Guess that's how it is, the two smallest get to be flower girl and ring bearer. That's profiling," the jock grinned, "and profiling is wrong."

"We all got on this show because of profiling," Justin pointed out.

"Wish we could get off it. Two years, I've been with you all. I think I know some of you more than my sisters."

"Yeah, we've been through a lot, haven't we?"

Justin looked up at the ceiling, a wistful look in his eye. Ezekiel, trying to overcome his nervousness, said, "You sure have come a long way, Justin."

"Man, don't remind me," the model said as he pinched his t-zone. "I actually went and watched reruns of the second and third season, and I couldn't believe how much of an ass I was."

"Oh, you learned by the fourth season," Tyler remarked. "Beth sure gave you a hard time, remember?"

"And how. I still think it was karma for what I did at the end of TDA."

Ezekiel remembered watching that, because Izzy was gripping his arm so hard at the time, he began to lose feeling in his fingers.

* * *

_"So as the winner, I get to pick who gets voted off next," Justin said after the foot race. The movie challenge had been a natural disaster film, and he, Beth, and Harold had run through many "destroyed" sets while Chef and Chris pelted them with heavy winds, debris, and the bear to chase them down._

_Justin eyed Beth, then looked at Harold. The poor nerd was on his hands and knees, one hand on his heart as he moaned about heart palpitations. Realizing who would be the weaker competition from this, he grinned and pointed at Beth._

_At first, she didn't get it. Then she looked as though he had struck her across the face. "Wh-what?" she gasped, looking behind her desperately. "M-me?"_

_"Sorry, Beth, but you have to go."_

_"But... but... why? I thought we... weren't we..."_

_Beth was wringing her hands, and coming closer to tears every second. It was starting to annoy Justin, because he didn't want her to make him look bad on TV, crying and sobbing._

_"Look Beth, it lasted well, but it had to come to an end," he said, his charming smile unwavering. "Just think of it this way: we don't have to compete against each other for the million dollars."_

_"W-Wait," Harold was beginning to stammer. "You... you two were getting really close to each other... how could you do this to her, gawsh?!"_

_"Look, it was strategy," Justin said, trying not to look at Beth. "When you get this far, it's every man for himself."_

_"Well, why not me?" Harold demanded. "I actually thought you two were starting to get along."_

_Justin couldn't help but scoff; Beth let out a choked sob when she heard it. "C'mon, Harold," the model scoffed. "You know how Izzy keeps insisting that we dated once? Well, I'd date her first. At least she's a little easier on the eyes."_

_Harold was on his feet, clenching his fists and glaring daggers at him. Beth was on her knees, sobbing heartbroken tears._

_"Actually..."_

_Chris and Chef Hatchet approached the three contestants, the host drumming his fingers together. He had that grin that he always did when he was planning to break bad news to someone. "You remember when I said that this contest had a twist?"_

_"You say that about all the competitions, Chris," Justin grumbled._

_"Well, I actually meant it this time. This time around, the person who comes in second gets to pick who gets voted off."_

_Justin's eyes widened. He looked down at Beth, who hadn't recovered from the emotional shock. "Oh crap," he muttered._

_Harold crossed his arms, still glaring at Justin. "Looks like Sephiroth just revealed the evil behind his pretty face."_

_Justin had no idea what he meant by that. He was more distracted that Beth had stopped crying, and was now looking at him. Her eyes, still wet, were angrily focused on him._

_"I choose Justin," she spat. "I want Justin to be voted off."_

_"Now c'mon," the model said, brushing a couple bangs away from his eyes. "Do you really want Harold to your final competitor? He'll crush you."_

_"I'm voting off you," Beth shrieked, startling everyone. "You... you creep! You liar! You were just using me the whole time! You bastard!"_

_"Whatever," Justin growled. "So what, it was a million dollars. You act as those everyone's supposed to be your friend, well the world is not as beautiful as me, Beth."_

_"Just shut up," Beth shouted. "You're... you're worse than Heather! You led me on... just get out of here, you douche bag, get out!!"_

_He scoffed, then waved his hand. "Fine, I'm going. But you're going to regret voting me off, you little pig-girl."_

_"You watch it," Harold shouted, "or I might just break your legs! I know kung-fu, you know!"_

_The model didn't say any more as Chef Hatchet escorted him to the limousine. After Justin was gone, Beth fell to her knees and began to cry, anger and heartbreak. Harold approached her, and hugged her close. Though the two weren't exactly close friends, she still appreciated it. Holding herself close to him, she let all of her emotions out._

_Beth didn't fully recover from this heartbreak for the rest of Total Drama Action, and Harold ended up winning. When the contest was over and everyone was at Playa des Losers 2, Justin found himself in a world of hurt.

* * *

_

"Boy, and she wasn't the only one to give me hell," Justin chuckled. "Your soon-to-be wife was so intent on getting revenge that I could barely sleep without fearing she might mess me up. Peanut butter, fire ants, jelly in my shoes, splashed with ink, voted off second on the third season... I was sometimes afraid for my life at times.

"Guess I deserved it, though. Good thing I did survive, because things got better. I had to beg, though."

"Ayup yep," Ezekiel said, laughing. "I guess that's why she wanted Beth to be the flower girl. The two have gotten along really well ever since Total Dray'ma Action, eh."

Tyler chuckled, and he continued to laugh until Ezekiel asked him what was so amusing. "Oh, I was just thinking about Izzy, and all the crazy things you two used to do. Then I remembered when you proposed to her."

"I still thought, at the time, it might had been too soon," Justin admitted. "But I dunno, almost two years together, and it was hard to tear you two apart. Even during the fourth season, when Chris had you on separate teams, you two were still together, in a way."

Ezekiel nodded. He thought back to all the time he and Izzy had spent getting to know each other. There were arguments, there were nights spent together, they talked about politics and religion and all the other touchy subjects (turns out Izzy is so adamant on using a Mac computer, she refers to other PCs, especially Windows, as "the evil ones").

"I felt it was best at the time," Ezekiel admitted. "It had bin a long time together, and frankly, being on this shoo' has bin so depressive at times, it was even getting to her. I wanted to cheer her up somehoo', eh."

"The way you did it was hilarious," Justin said with a laugh.

"It wasn't supposed to be, eh." The prairie boy looked over at Tyler, who hid behind his magazine.

* * *

_"Okay, Izzy, are you ready?" Bridgette asked the red head. The surfer girl was holding Izzy's hand, leading her to a "big surprise." Seeing how excited Bridgette was, Izzy knew this was going to be good._

_"Is it a monkey?" Izzy was asking. "I've always wanted a monkey! Oh, better than that, is it two monkeys?"_

_It was in the lobby of the Playa des Losers, the fifth one. Some of the other contestants, the ones who had been voted off as well, were there, though most of them had no idea what was going on._

_Tyler was standing in front of a large curtain that had been hung up. Izzy looked at the curtain with an anxious grin, bouncing on her feet._

_"Okay m'lady Izzy," Tyler said. He was dressed as Chris Maclean, so many people thought this was a joke of some kind. "Did you know that, with the two years you've spent with Mr. Ezekiel-"_

_"No, it's bin one year and nine months, eh," a voice from behind the curtain hissed._

_"Dude, it doesn't matter," he muttered to the voice._

_"Yes it does... oh just go a'heed!"_

_"Well, Izzy-"_

_"M'lady Izzy!"_

_"Dude, c'mon!"_

_"I want this to be romantic, eh!"_

_"You want to come out here and do it, then?"_

_"No, just... just skip to the end of your speech, eh! Man, I knew we should have rehearsed this..."_

_Tyler cleared his throat, and began reading off a note card, "I present you this, your prize, Izzy!"_

_He yanked the curtain back, but he pulled just a little too hard. The rod supporting the curtain came down, barely missing Tyler. The curtain fell down on whoever was behind it._

_"Gah! Tyler, get it off," Ezekiel shouted, thrashing from underneath._

_The jock was desperately trying to do that, but his attempts were accidentally keeping him underneath, what with the wild thrashing. Izzy was cracking up, while Bridgette watched with her hands over her mouth in horror._

_"Damn it, I am so sorry," Tyler shouted. "C'mon man, just get out there and propose!"_

_Izzy immediately stopped laughing, and stared with wide eyes as Ezekiel finally managed to free himself; he was dressed in a nice suit, something similar to what he wore on his first date with Izzy._

_Now Tyler was horrorstricken, holding his hands over his mouth. "Oops," he whimpered. "Did I just spoil it?"_

_"Gosh dang it, Tyler, I'm gonna kill you," Ezekiel said as he frantically tried to get to his feet; however, he slipped on the curtain rod, and landed on his back._

_"Ow," he groaned as he lay there, too much in pain to get up. "Well, we completely blew it, eh..."_

_He had the wind knocked out of him when Izzy pounced on top of him. "Is it true?" she shouted, the brightest of smiles on her face. "You're not pranking me? You're proposing to me?"_

_"Yes, eh," Ezekiel groaned as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring box. Izzy opened it to see a gold ring with a green stone in it._

_"I knoo' that a diamond is the traditional stone, but I thought that an emerald would be okay. It matches your eyes so well."_

_"Yes," Izzy whispered, tears forming in her eyes._

_"So I made the right choice?"_

_"I mean a'boot the proposal," she said; she had started talking like him a few months back, especially when she was happy._

_"You... you mean it?"_

_"Yes, of course I do! I'll marry you, my Zeke!"_

_She kissed him. It would have been a lot more romantic if he was lying on his back in pain, and a busted curtain nearby; however, it was the most romantic moment any of the contestants had seen.

* * *

_

Izzy and Bridgette, also thinking back to the proposal, shared a laugh. "Oh, he really blew it, poor Tyler," Bridgette giggled. "He was supposed to give a big speech, and then pull back the curtain."

"It was a really good plan, but he should have asked someone who doesn't have a record of wrecking things," Izzy agreed. "I like Tyler a lot, but I hope he won't be on my team this season. On second thought, maybe I do. You, him, Ezekiel and me on one time, we'll be the Killer Weddings!"

Bridgette smiled, and when there was a knock on the door, both eagerly looked to see who it was.

"Just me, wedding baby," Leshawna said as she came in. "They need a couple more minutes before it all starts up."

Izzy nodded, then readjusted her neckline; her dress felt like it was constricting her. Bridgette helped her out, making sure not to wrinkle the dress. Izzy's dress was a pure white, something she hadn't wanted at first; she had wanted something green, and also to have bright orange and pink because she wanted to look wild. Bridgette had insisted on white, as white was the traditional color for being virginal.

"So Miss Bride," Leshawna asked as she sat next to the two ladies, "who's gonna be here besides all the other contestants? I didn't get a good head count."

"Ezekiel's parents, of course. They're the nicest people ever, I got to finally meet them a week ago," Izzy gushed. "They almost weren't allowed to come to the wedding, because Chris wanted it to be contestants only, since the wedding is going on the show's budget."

"How'd you guys change his mind?"

"Ezekiel's dad said if he didn't let them come to their son's wedding, he would gather his hunting buddies and hunt him down."

"Nice," Leshawna said, grinning. "But what about your family, sugar?"

"Well, my older brother and my little sister are going to be here..."

"What about the rest of them?"

Izzy sighed, looking down at her shoes. Bridgette, who knew the answer, rubbed her back. "They're not coming," she admitted. "Mom, dad, and my older sister refuse to come."

Leshawna winced. "Sorry, didn't know that."

"Well, I almost expected it, but I was really hoping...," Izzy sighed again, then shook her head. "No! No, I refuse to be sad on the happiest day of my life. And the night I've bin waiting fur, eh!"

She clasped her hands and grinned. Both Leshawna and Bridgette chuckled. "Boy, I bet Ezekiel's over there, telling his buddies the same thing," the large sister said.

"Nah, my Zeke's too shy to discuss our sex life," Izzy giggled, leaning back in her chair. "My soon-to-be-hubby is probably gonna be real nervous on our wedding night."

Izzy smiled as she looked up at the ceiling. "Won't be able to wear white anymore. 'Course, I doo'nt plan on ever doing this a'geen, eh."

"Good attitude, Izzy," Bridgette said, rubbing her back still. "I gotta say, your fluctuating accent sure is a good sign."

The redhead tapped her fingers together, anxious but blissful. "I'm just so glad Izaac and Zoey decided to come. That's my brother and little sister, by the way," she explained to Leshawna. "He drove all the way out here to see me, and I... I actually didn't think they'd come. Dad and Mom are pretty mad at them, from what I hear."

"Now I thought you said you weren't gonna make yourself unhappy, Lady in White," Leshawna chastised her.

"Well, I just had to say that," Izzy said. Izaac bleached his hair, I think he looks better that way! And Zoey, boy, she's got to be so pretty."

As Izzy described her siblings to Leshawna and Bridgette, she couldn't help but think about the fateful day her parents all but disowned her. And talking about her siblings was the only thing keeping her from crying...

* * *

_"Dad, hi," Izzy said on the phone. "How are things?"_

_She was calling from Playa des Losers 5's lobby, admiring the engagement ring now on her finger. What her father said, she wasn't paying much attention to, and he sounded a little off; Izzy guessed he might have had a couple beers._

_"Well, I'm calling to say I've got excellent news, better than the time I discovered the cure to an unknown virus," she gushed. "Ezekiel proposed to me, and I said yes!"_

_She waited for a reaction, but when none came, she continued. "And so, we were thinking of something in three months. Because that would match the first time Ezekiel and I-"_

_Izzy was cut off when her father started yelling, so furious and loud that Izzy had to hold the phone away from her. She was thunderstruck as her father continued to scream, well after she had given the news._

_She kept trying to get him to stop, but his roaring seemed nonstop, and she could barely make sense of the curse-filled rant._

_Izzy's father was still shouting when Ezekiel, Courtney, and Tyler came into the room. Her fiancé knew right away that something was wrong, and hurried over to her._

_"He's not even letting me talk," Izzy exclaimed, holding the phone at arm's length as if it might bite her. "He just started screaming after I told him we were engaged!"_

_Courtney raised a dubious eyebrow, then Izzy's father shouted something so foul that the CIT clasped her hands over her mouth. Tyler winced too, inching away from the phone. Ezekiel couldn't bear seeing Izzy so upset, and did something foolishly brave._

_"Give it to me, Izzy," he asked. She refused at first, but eventually gave it to him, with all the cautiousness of someone handing a poisonous creature to another. "Sir?"_

_Ezekiel had to shout into the phone, over Izzy's father's screaming. The enraged man on the other side stopped his rant long enough to ask, "Is this that Ezekiel bastard?"_

_"That's me, all right eh," the prairie boy exclaimed. "Now you listen to me, sir. This is your daughter's choice, and she is your flesh and blood! You should be happy fur her, she's happy! "_

_There was a moment of silence before her father burst into a hateful rant more venomous than before. Ezekiel was so unnerved by it, that for a couple weeks afterwards, he'd have nightmares about it, and a serious dread that her father might come and do some of the terrible things he suggested doing to him._

_Eventually, Izzy's mother took the phone away from him, and she very calmly asked, "This is Ezekiel, right?"_

_"Y-y-yes, ma'am," he stammered, still perturbed by her father._

_"You are not marrying my daughter."_

_Ezekiel didn't know what was worse: Izzy's father screaming threats at him, or Izzy's mother calmly ordering him._

_"I'm soo'ry, ma'am, but I already proposed to her."_

_"Then you call it off," she said, still eerily calm and stern. "You made a mistake, and that's final."_

_This triggered something in Ezekiel, something that made him very mad. "I most certainly did not, eh," he hissed in the phone. "How dare you say I made a mistake in proposing to your daughter? Doo'nt you care a'boot her at all?!"_

_"I don't need to hear this-"_

_"Oh, yes you do," Ezekiel shouted. "Izzy and I are getting married, and while I'd rather be on you and her father's good side, I refuse to argue with someone who is so fervently a'geenst our wishes! So unless you're coming as guests for your daughter's wedding, then doo'nt come at all!"_

_He hung up the phone in a fury. Three heavy breaths later, he gasped in horror. "Oh God," he whimpered, "what did I just do?"_

_Izzy glomp-hugged him from behind. "That was the bravest thing I've ever seen in my life, my Zeke!"_

_"Man, I think so too," Tyler muttered, scratching the back of his head, "especially if he does come here with a baseball bat."_

_Courtney sighed and shook her head. "Maybe it would have been best if you had called and asked first before proposing, Ezekiel?"_

_"I'm pretty sure his reaction would have bin the same, eh."_

_"I suppose," the CIT said, then she pat his shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure they cannot do anything to stop your wedding. If they try, I'll get my lawyer on them."_

_"You have a lawyer?" Izzy asked, looking excited now. "Groovy, I've always wanted to sue someone!" _

_A couple weeks later, Izzy left a message on her home phone, giving them the exact date and location for the wedding, they didn't hear from any of her family in two weeks. Then, it was her little sister, Zoey._

_"We're on our way," Zoey exclaimed, sounding ecstatic. "I'm so happy for you, Izzy! Is he really a mountain man?"_

_"Um, not really," Izzy admitted, chuckling sheepishly. "So, all five of you are on your way?"_

_Her sister hesitated, then sighed heavily. "Izzy, I'm sorry, but it's just Izaac and me."_

_"What?"_

_"Mom and dad... don't want to come. Neither does Elizabeth. I'm... I'm sorry, Izzy."_

_Izzy sat down in a chair, thunderstruck for a few seconds. Then she managed to smile. "I'm just glad you two are coming."_

_"I haven't been the nicest sister, I know," Zoey said, "but I really wanted to be there for your wedding."_

_"It's the nicest thing you've done for me. You don't even need to get me a gift; just be there, is all."_

_"Too late, we got you something."_

_"OH GOODY, YAY!"

* * *

_

As Izzy continued to talk, she was interrupted by Leshawna. "Whoa whoa, sorry to cut in, Izzy girl, but if your dad isn't coming, who's giving you away?"

"Oh, we have that covered, don't worry," Izzy said, waving her hand. "We picked someone who we thought would be a really good choice, someone fitting to give me away as a father figure."

"It's not Chris Maclean, is it?"

"Oh hell no. It was hard enough to make sure this wouldn't be televised," Izzy grinned and added, "we had the place thoroughly combed for cameras and frisked him before he came in."

"Fine, but who is giving you away?"

Before Izzy could answer, there was a knock on the door. Beth poked her head in and said, "It's time, Izzy!"

She clapped her hands, and whispered, "Hot diggity dog, I'm gonna marry my Zeke! I really am gonna marry Ezekiel!"

Izzy began to breathe faster, and Bridgette had to rub her shoulders to calm her down. "You're gonna do fine, Izzy. Just stay calm, don't faint or anything."

"Me faint?" she asked, barking out laughter. "Izzy faint? I don't faint! I don't get that excited! I... I... oh God, I think I may faint!"

"Just stay calm, Izzy babe," Leshawna instructed her.

"Yes, try to think of good times," Bridgette suggested. "Try not to think of the future just yet, think of things that made you happy."

Izzy took a deep breath, considered this, and started giggling. "Like Ezekiel's bachelor party?"

Bridgette started to get pink in the face, something that Leshawna noticed. "Just what happened at his party, huh?"

* * *

_Tyler was out-of-his-mind drunk. He kept grabbing hold of Ezekiel, gushing, "I'm sho happy for you, Eshekiel! Really, I am!"_

_"That's nice, Tyler, you told me that nine times already, eh."_

_"But I really, rrrreally mean it, eh. Hehe, eh. You're marrying shuch a beautiful, wild, fun girl."_

_"Yes, I am, eh."_

_"I shaw her boobs once," Tyler slurred, then repeated himself, louder this time, "I saw Ishshy's boobies!"_

_He then fell over backwards on the floor, giggling and hiccuping. Ezekiel looked over at the others, and muttered, "Did you guys _really_ need to serve beer here?"_

_"What'sh a bachelor party without... hic!... booze?" Duncan shouted, hammering his fist against the table. "Damn it, why the hell aren't you drunk? It'sh your party, and you'll drink if we want you to!"_

_"Y-yeah, dude," DJ agreed, barely able to sit in his chair without danger of sliding out. "C'mon, shome of thish wash a little pricey."_

_Ezekiel sighed, and looked around. Aside from him, he probably was the only one sober. Geoff and Harold were singing karaoke loudly (and not very well), Trent was slumped on a couch, Noah was muttering a very long-winded rant to himself, Justin had gone to check on Cody after the tech-geek found himself sick to his stomach, and Owen had already passed out._

_He was disappointed with his bachelor party thus far. He had heard wild things that happened at them, like games or women popping out of large cakes. Though he was pretty certain he didn't want that because he wasn't sure how Izzy would react, he would have wanted a cake, at the least._

_"Cake would have been better than booze," Ezekiel mused aloud._

_"Booze-flavored cake," DJ relished the idea. "Do they make booze-flavored cake?" he asked before finally falling out of his chair._

_"This is great," the prairie boy grumbled as he sipped his soda. "My bachelor party is the most depressing event of my life."_

_"Awww, we can't have that, now can we?"_

_He turned around to see Izzy, Bridgette, and Eva were in the room. A little bit embarrassed, even though nothing vulgar on his part was happening, Ezekiel stammered out a hello._

_"This is the worst party I've ever seen," Eva remarked, smirking at the drunken guys._

_"Yeah, so you watch over them, Eva," Izzy said, "make sure they don't drink any more."_

_"Why me? I don't want the depressing job."_

_"Because no matter how drunk they are, they aren't going to argue with you if you tell them they've had enough."_

_"And by the looks of it, they've all had enough," Bridgette remarked, giggling._

_"And the sound of it," Eva winced as Harold and Geoff started wailing "It's Raining Men" on the karaoke machine. "Do I have to stay here with them?"_

_"Yes, now c'mon, Zeke," Izzy grabbed Ezekiel's hand and pulled him out of the room, Bridgette right next to them._

_In the adjacent room, Ezekiel breathed a sigh of relief. "Nice to be in a room that doesn't stink of alcohol and... and... what's a good word for a bunch of guys really drunk, eh?"_

_"A drunken sword fight, eh," Izzy remarked, giggling. "If those pack of drunkards cannot give you a proper bachelor party, then we will."_

_"There wasn't even cake. I thought at every party, there is cake."_

_"Well, we tried to get Lindsay to do the naked woman in a cake, but she was too woo'ried that there might be cameras there."_

_"I think with the amount they had to drink, they wouldn't even recognize Lindsay if she did that... wait, naked?"_

_Izzy burst out laughing. "Oh my Zeke. You still have so much to learn, no matter how much I teach you, eh."_

_"You knoo', you really are starting to sound like me, eh," he said, smiling for the first time at his bachelor party. "So, what did the girls do for your stagette party?"_

_"Played a whole lot of video games," Bridgette said with a nonchalant shrug and a smile. "Izzy says that she always wanted to do some wild gaming without feeling bad about being so good."_

_"I'm not that bad, am I?" Ezekiel asked, giving his fiancée sad eyes._

_"Well, at the hoo'rer survival games you are you, hon, but not other games. You kick my as ass in Wii Sports, but you panic way too quickly during Left 4 Dead."_

_Izzy smirked at him, then started twiddling her fingers against his arm. "My stagette party is not quite over yet, eh. But, my Zeke, you were expecting women at your stag party, huh?"_

_"It's... only what I've heard happens at these things, eh."_

_"Nah, it's okay. I was hoping they'd do better, so Bridgette and I came up with something better."_

_At this, the surfer girl's face turned pink, and she looked away, smiling and digging her toes into the ground. This confused Ezekiel, and he tried very hard not to let his mind wander._

_"You... and Bridgette...," Izzy spoke slowly, pointing to both of them, "are going to make out!"_

_This caught Ezekiel off guard, so much so that he wondered if he had inhaled too many of the alcohol fumes. "Um, what?" he asked, staring at his fiancée._

_"You see, you've never kissed another girl before, my Zeke, and I don't count the time you smooched Tyler."_

_"Neither does he," Bridgette joked, tucking a blond strand of her hair behind her ear._

_"And I'm not gonna let you get married when you've only had one girl before in your life," Izzy declared. "Before long, you'll be regretting how you never got to kiss another girl besides me, how you never got to live life like a normal, young man."_

_"Izzy, I'm really certain that with you, I'm going to be living life."_

_"Aww, that's so sweet of you to say," Izzy cooed, hugging him. She held his shoulders and whispered in his ear, "But I do know you always had a crush on Bridgette."_

_Ezekiel didn't answer. He drummed his fingers against his hands, thinking about what to do. Was this a test of his faithfulness with Izzy? Was he supposed to say no?_

_"Oh, I know what's going on in that brilliant mind of yours, my wonderful Zeke," Izzy cooed. "This is no test, and we aren't going to take no for an answer."_

_"Wow," Ezekiel muttered, staring at her in amazement. "You knoo' me way too well, Izzy."_

_"Oh I wouldn't say that, but I knoo' when you're still the shy prairie boy I met almost two years ago," she giggled. "So c'mon! Usually guys go out to strip joints and get lap dances from women with fake boobs. I'd much rather have you make 'oot with a girlfriend of mine as your 'last fling' kind of thing, my love."_

_"Is...," he stammered, looking at Bridgette; he couldn't deny how cute she looked with that pink blush on her face. "Does Geoff knoo' a'boot this?"_

_"Yes, he does," Bridgette said, fiddling with her hair more. "He's all right with it, but he was pretty sure you'd be so drunk, you wouldn't even remember."_

_"But now Geoff's so drunk, he probably won't even remember agreeing to it, eh," Izzy said, her impish grin as wide as ever. "So c'mon!"_

_She grabbed Bridgette by her hoodie, and practically threw her at Ezekiel. When he caught her in his arms, they both blushed and looked nervously at each other._

_"Make out as long as you want," Izzy declared, heading for the door. "I'm gonna join Eva, make sure those naughty boys don't drink themselves into oblivion! Have fun!"_

_She shut the door behind her, leaving the prairie boy and surfer girl alone with each other. Bridgette was the first to react. "Look, Ezekiel," she said, "I don't mind this, really, but if you don't feel comfortable..."_

_Ezekiel chuckled and shrugged. "Well, I think Izzy might be upset then, since it's her bachelor party present and all, eh."_

_"You think she'd be upset if you didn't do this?"_

_"I knoo' her pretty well too, after all this time. I think Izzy really wants me to make sure I've... well, at the least kissed, another girl, eh. That'll put her mind at ease that I'd never be dissatisfied with our relationship, though I can never see how I could be."_

_Bridgette smiled warmly at him. "You two are going to be so happy together. I just hope we get off this damn show soon, so that you two can really begin your lives together."_

_They started to kiss, slow at first but then with a bit of the gusto that Bridgette could be known for when it came to making out. Ezekiel found himself sometimes comparing her to Izzy._

_"_She is a little softer than Izzy_," he thought as they kissed,_ _"_though she doesn't have the same kind of passion, those her's isn't bad, eh.

Wait, why am I comparing them? It feels ridiculous_," he chastised himself. "_Although, I just gotta note, she doesn't use as much tongue as Izzy... oh my_!"_

_Bridgette had just proven him wrong, and he let slip a little whimper. She giggled into his mouth as they continued to kiss, and he stopped making comparisons_

_After a while, Bridgette parted for a short bit. As he admired how flushed and out of breath she was, she glanced at her watch . "Geez, it's been almost forty-five minutes."_

_"Whoa, really?" Ezekiel glanced at her watch, and then started to feel panic rising up. "Do... do you think we should stop? Izzy might not have wanted us to carry on this long-"_

_"I heard that," Izzy's loud voice from the next room startled them both. "You two better make out shome more, I didn't get you the best bachelor party preshent for only a few minutes!"_

_Bridgette and Ezekiel exchanged glances, and she shrugged. Ezekiel glanced at the door and started to say, "Was it joo'st me, or did she sound a little... mmmph!"_

_The surfer girl had started kissing him again, and he soon melted into her soft treatment. As much as he enjoyed making out with Bridgette, his thoughts kept drifting back to Izzy. After a while, Bridgette could sense this too._

_"Maybe we can call it," she said, gently stroking his face. "But you know, I think Izzy was right. It's so much more comforting for the bride-to-be to have her soon-to-be-groom to do this rather than have lap dances from strippers at a seedy joint."_

_"Well, this bachelor party is a whole lot more better noo', much better than just being around a bunch of my drunk friends, eh."_

_She smiled, and kissed his forehead. "Congratulations, Ezekiel. And thank you for everything."_

_"Thanks for what?"_

_"You did a lot for me back during Total Drama Action," she said. "You and Izzy, you helped me get through the gloomy mood I was in, helped resolve that conflict with Duncan. You also saved my butt during Total Drama Arena, when I really blew that samurai challenge."_

_Ezekiel shrugged with a modest smile, and she burst out giggling. "Oh, you can be so cute" she said. "Izzy is so lucky."_

_"Oh God, Izzy," he said, standing up. "I really hope she was okay with this! I'm gonna go see her, eh!"_

_He almost bolted out of the room, Bridgette right behind him. When they were back in the bachelor party room, both surprised to see what they did._

_Izzy and Eva, visibly drunk, were at the karaoke machine, singing/yelling "I Kissed a Girl" and occasionally sharing a kiss. Harold was giving them slurred cheers, while Duncan and Noah were screaming for them to stop before they died._

_"Oh Izzy," Bridgette remarked, chuckling and shaking her head. "I guess now we know why she wanted us out of the room for so long."_

_"Part of her stagette party, eh," Ezekiel remarked. He and Bridgette sat down, laughing and cheering on Izzy and Eva.

* * *

_

"Good thing Eva didn't remember what happened that night, huh?" Bridgette asked Izzy, who shrugged.

"Oh, I'm not that bad of a drunken kisser, but man, did my head hurt," she replied. "I can see why my Zeke hates to drink."

"C'mon white girls, we got a wedding to go to," Leshawna snapped, "and if I remember correctly, it's yours, Izzy!"

"Oh good, I get to come to my wedding," Izzy cheered. "I hope I look good for it!"

"You look very beautiful, Izzy," Bridgette reassured her.

"Good, then the groom will be happy," she said. "Personally, I always thought my wedding would be a little more... what's the word I'm looking for... oh yes! Adventurous!"

"What did you have in mind?"

"Jurassic Park. Sadly, they haven't fond those fossilized mosquitos, so it'll be a long time before they're cloning DNA."

"You want to be chased by irate velociraptors?" Leshawna asked, raising a dubious eyebrow.

"It'd be one wild wedding!"

* * *

Ezekiel was standing up at the podium, swallowing hard. He tried to focus on those seated, while Tyler, Cody, and Reverend Love stood nearby him.

DJ was holding Heather's hand. Although he had managed to get to stop being such a bitchy girl, he had asked him to make sure she didn't do anything to ruin the wedding. Heather was way too afraid of the wrath of Izzy either way, so DJ assured him all would be fine.

Sadie was seated between Trent and Katie, each of them holding one of her hands. Since the bigger of the twins was much more of a crier, she was going to need emotional support than anyone.

Chris sat with Ezekiel's parents. His mom was already starting to tear up, and the host luckily had brought a box of tissues. Ezekiel wondered if this was a nice side of Chris no one had seen; maybe the sadistic host had a thing for weddings? No, more than likely he wanted to be on his father's good side after that hunting threat.

Beth had already done her romp down the aisle, and was now sitting next Justin. Nearby them was Geoff, Lindsay, and Owen. Lindsay was also near tears already, and Beth provided a handkerchief. Owen offered his sleeve, but his girlfriend didn't think that would be appropriate.

Leshawna had also returned the ladies' dressing room, and was sitting next to Harold. Harold, who had won TDA but only got a small amount of the money before the third season started, had spent the rest of his prize money in getting Leshawna a great dress. She showed her appreciation by holding him close to her throughout the last three days.

Duncan, Courtney, Eva, Noah, and Gwen were all seated together. Gwen was giving Cody little waves, which were returned with smiles. The goth girl and Duncan were almost unrecognizable, because both of them had their hair normally done with no dye. While Gwen didn't mind being a ravenhair for today, Duncan had put up a huge fight with Courtney; she prevailed, and now he was running a hand through his lightly combed black hair.

Zoey and Izaac, Izzy's siblings, were seated nearest to the podium. Both of them looked excited, and Ezekiel looked forward to getting to know them better after the wedding. The next day, Izzy and he had planned some time with family, mostly him with her siblings and her with his parents. It all had to be done before the next season of Total Drama started, as both of them were contestants.

Ezekiel looked at all of them, glad to have so many friends for such a special day. He looked at his mother, and waved at her. She immediately burst into tears, and he waved desperately for her to stop. Chris and her husband worked hard to calm her down.

"If Izzy's doesn't come out here soon," Tyler whispered, "your mom's not going to have enough tears for the rest of the wedding."

"Doo'nt count on that, eh. When she read _The Notebook_, she went throo' two boxes of tissue and a carton of ice cream, and she still was still crying for an hour afterwards, eh."

Before Tyler could comment on this, "Here Comes The Bride" started to play. Izzy began her slow walk down his aisle, looking radiant. She was trying to stay calm, almost overwhelmed by emotion, and was singing without moving her lips, "Here comes the bride / fat, short and wide / slips on a banana peel / and goes for a ride."

And on her arm, bringing her down the aisle, was Chef Hatchet.

The large man had been a great help in getting the wedding ready, mostly because he intimidated Chris into all of it. It turned out that Chef loved weddings, and he wanted nothing more than to see a happy one. In thanks for all the help, and since they sympathized with him at times, Ezekiel and Izzy asked him to lead her down the aisle.

Ezekiel didn't notice Chef Hatchet, nor the astonished looks of the guests that the large cook was happily leading Izzy down the aisle. All Ezekiel could look at was Izzy.

"_She looks so beautiful,_" he thought, clasping his hands over his heart. He kept telling himself to keep breathing, and he smiled at his approaching bride. "_Izzy, I cannot wait to start our lives together, eh... we'll be happy together, I swear_."

Izzy was looking up at Ezekiel, never breaking eye contact with him. "_I never thought this day would come,_" she thought to herself, "_but now that it has... oh Ezekiel. You've made me the happiest girl on the planet. I promise, I'll make you the happiest guy on the planet, from here on._"

When Izzy was at the podium and Chef Hatchet had taken his seat, the Reverend Love began to speak. Ezekiel and Izzy were holding hands, with Cody, Tyler, and Bridgette standing nearby.

About three sentences into his speech, he was drowned out. Ezekiel's mother started crying, and the chain reaction began. DJ was sobbing pretty soon, then Sadie, Owen, Lindsay, and eventually Chef Hatchet. The Reverend Love paused for a short while to allow things to calm down.

"I hope you brought a lot of tissues," he whispered to Ezekiel and Izzy. She giggled, while Ezekiel whipped a tear away from his eye.

Once those crying calmed down, the Reverend continued on. When it came time for them to exchange vows, Ezekiel looked over at Tyler.

"Could you hand me my card, Tyler?" he asked quietly. As the jock nodded and reached in his pocket, Ezekiel turned to Izzy and whispered, "I had it written doo'n, because I was afraid I would forget something, eh."

She beamed at him, then glanced at Tyler. Ezekiel looked at him too, and panic started to rise when he noticed his best man was frantically searching his pockets.

"Doo'nt tell me," Ezekiel whimpered, rubbing his hands together nervously.

"I know I have it somewhere," he muttered, rummaging his pockets.

After about a minute, Tyler eventually found the card in his back pocket. He sheepishly handed it to Ezekiel, who bopped him on the forehead with it.

"Sorry, dude," Tyler said over the laughter of the guests. "If I lost it, I know you wouldn't have forgiven me."

"First the proposal plans and now this, eh," Ezekiel muttered before turning to Izzy.

"Izzy," he said, staring into her bright green eyes while occasionally looking down at the card, "ever since I truly met you, I had loved in some way, eh. I loved you as my guardian angel when you saved me from drowning in a pool. I loved you as my friend and mentor when you helped me learn a'boot the real world, and all the strange things in it. Then I loved you as my soul mate, someone I could spend the rest of my life with, never regret, and never be bored."

Some of the people there politely laughed, and Ezekiel didn't mind since Izzy was giggling with tears in her eyes. "So I promise to be your guardian angel, your friend, and your soul mate. Through the good times and the bad, I'll be there fur you, eh. I love you, Izzy, and I always will."

She bit on her lip to prevent sobbing out loud; Ezekiel's mom was crying again. Izzy looked back at Bridgette, who had been holding her note card for her own vow. Trying to keep her voice level, she looked at Ezekiel as she read her note card.

"Ezekiel, you have always been there for me. When things were bad for me, you stuck by me. When I thought things couldn't get worse, and in my life, things really can get bad. But you never left me, never gave up on me. Everything I've ever wanted in life, you have fulfilled and more.

"I know that we'll be happy together. For the wild and crazy things in my life, this is the one that feels the most right. I love you, and I will continue to make your life as best as I can."

Ezekiel held back a sob, and tried to wipe a tear away. She reached up and did it for him. "I love you," she repeated.

* * *

The rest of the wedding went smoothly, despite the crying of Ezekiel's mother, Sadie, and DJ. At the reception, it was time for the speeches and toasts.

Chef Hatchet went first. "Izzy's been like a daughter to me, at times. Fierce, rebellious, and stubborn, yet special and self-reliant. I watched her get wild during the show, and I also saw sides to her I never thought possible. Her and Ezekiel had something beautiful and it... it..."

He burst into tears, then loudly shouted, "I love you two! May you always be happy!"

Chris Maclean spoke second. "Well, you two getting married is certainly going to make the next season interesting. Bet you're glad you signed up for the show now, huh?"

He laughed, though not many of the others did; most rolled their eyes. "So I've decided on what I can give you for your wedding gift: this upcoming season, you both will be on the same team. No more competing against each other, now that you're husband and wife. You two are more romantic than the reality shows that are about marriage!"

Tyler was next. "I'm not good at speeches, so I'll keep it short. You two, Ezzy as I like to call it, you're too awesome. I watched as you two grew as a couple when we were stuck at that resort, and dang, it was so cool to watch. So... so... I'm sure as a married couple, you two will be just as much fun to be around!"

Bridgette spoke next. "Izzy, Ezekiel, I love both of you. I saw you develop, and I watched as you two grew into a couple I was even sometimes envious of. Though I didn't envy the time you two were locked in a janitor's closet," she paused to laugh, "no matter how much Izzy insisted you had a good time. But I just think that you two are so wonderful together, and I hope that you have a wonderful marriage and life."

Courtney had something to say as well. "I remember when I was talking to Ezekiel and Izzy about marriage, when they first were considering it. At first, I didn't think they'd wait, that they would get married at soon as they could. But they didn't, they really took their time, and looking at them now, I'm just so proud of them.

"They're really made something magical, something special. And I hope what they have done becomes an inspiration for the other couples on this show."

With this comment, some of the other people in the show looked nervous, especially Duncan. Geoff was the only one nodding his head, smiling and casting Bridgette a look.

"Next in-between season break," he whispered to himself.

The dance part was quite fun, especially since Izzy could really tear up the dance floor, regardless of wearing her wedding dress. It was hard for Ezekiel to keep up with her, and he had to sit out a couple times.

Then it came time for the throwing the bouquet. Izzy really started to wind it up, but Ezekiel insisted that she not aim to throw them all the way to Alaska. Pouting a little, she simply tossed them behind her back, and Gwen caught them.

"Yes," Cody cheered, looking more happy than Gwen. "Oh, that is such good sign!"

As Gwen and Cody celebrated with a kiss, Izzy sat down in a chair. "Okay, my Zeke, your turn."

Ezekiel looked confused. Not very familiar with weddings, he hadn't a clue what he was supposed to do now. "Um, what are you talking a'boot, Izzy?"

"You have to take off my garter, and throw it to the men."

"How do I do that, eh?"

She grinned, and lifted one of her legs up at him, pulling up her dress a little. Ezekiel turned bright red.

"What? I have to... reach under your dress?"

"Yep!"

"In front of everyone?"

"Ayup yep! It's tradition!"

"But... but...," Ezekiel stammered, looking at the others nervously, "that's a weird tradition!"

"It suits us, we're weird people," Izzy cackled, then beckoned with his finger. "If it'll help you, duck under my dress while you do it."

This did not help Ezekiel, because his face was redder than ever, especially when the others started letting out catcalls and whistles. Retrieving the garter as quickly as possible, he came back out nervously giggling.

"Have fun down there?" Duncan asked, smirking at him.

Geoff was the only one not taunting Ezekiel, as he was dead-set focused on catching that garter. When Ezekiel prepared to shoot it with his thumbs, every muscle in his body tightened for action. When the garter was fired, he bowled over Tyler, Harold, Duncan, and even Owen to get it.

"I caught it," he said, a heap on the ground, those he had knocked over lying around him. "I caught the garter!"

"I think my liver has been pierced," Harold moaned.

Geoff managed to stand up and limp over to Bridgette. "Bridge, I caught it," he repeated himself, waving the garter around. "We have to be next! Woohoo!"

Bridgette was blushing madly ever since Geoff had caught the garter, and she sank into the giant kiss he gave her. Izzy and Ezekiel were cheering loudly as well.

* * *

Lindsay brought a plate with a big slice of cake on it to Owen. "Here you go, honey," she chirped as she set in front of him. "I made sure you got it at extra largeness, with lots of yummers!"

"Oh goody goody goody," Owen chanted, but before he dug in, he looked at his girlfriend. "Um, are you sure you don't want any?"

"No, I have to watch my figure," she remarked. "And remember, you promised to go on a diet after the wedding, so we'd both be watching our weight!"

"I guess so," he remarked, defeated, "but Lindsay? You don't need to lose weight, you're just fine. You should have a slice."

"Aww, thank you, Owen, but I-"

"No no, no buts," he exclaimed, pushing the plate towards her. "C'mon, you eat this slice, I'll go on that diet with no regrets!"

Lindsay swallowed hard, looking at the forbidden food of her diet. With a heavy sigh, she took a bit. Her eyes widened, and she began gobbling it down with Owen-like gusto.

Gwen was smiling slyly at Cody as she inspected the bridal bouquet. "We sure got lucky during this wedding, huh?" she asked her boyfriend. "You got to be ring bearer, I caught the bouquet."

Cody just swooned. He was just imagining Gwen wearing as a bride, his bride, and what their wedding would be like. She noticed this, and smirked at him.

"Trust me when I say that being at a wedding does really hype the urge," she said, "but don't propose to me quite yet."

He blinked, then asked, "Why?"

"Personally, I'd rather be off the show first. I hate it a lot more than Izzy and Ezekiel do."

"It is how we all meet."

"Indeed. But still, just wait a bit longer to act out that fantasy you're having, Code-Miester."

Katie was gushing a mile a minute about the wedding herself, and her own fantasies. "Sadie and I, like, so want to have matching dresses for our wedding. And we wanted to do a double wedding! Isn't that right, Sadie?"

"That's so totally right," she agreed.

Katie nodded, then looked at her boyfriend, and was surprised to see him look upset. "What's wrong, Tyler?"

"Well, I was just thinking about things," he admitted. "I really messed up Ezekiel's proposal, and I almost screwed up the wedding."

"Nah, you did fine," Katie said. "You've done a whole lot for those two! In fact, I think I may have to reward you with..."

She leaned forward and whispered in Tyler's ear. His eyes went wide, and a sly smile crept across his face.

"What'd you say to him, what'd you you?" Sadie pleaded. Katie turned around and whispered in Sadie's ear, and she had a very similar reaction to Tyler.

Trent was curious now. "Something good?" he asked. Sadie whispered in his ear, and the musician couldn't help but grin. "Lucky you, Tyler."

"Actually, I could do it to you too," Sadie said, batting her eyes at Trent before turning to Katie. "Let's get something to eat!"

As the two BFFLs skipped over to the food tables, Tyler and Trent exchanged a high-five.

Most of the other couples were chatting amongst each other, but Bridgette and Geoff were too busy making out. He winced when she stroked his side, so she stopped kissing him to ask, "Did you bruise yourself?"

"Yeah, it kind of hurts, But I'll be fine, I got that garter," he said with a triumphant smile, holding it up.

Bridgette took the garment from his hands and smiled slyly at him. "Well then, tonight, I just might wear this." Geoff growled playfully, and she added, "And only this."

He chuckled, now blushing. Scratching the back of his head, he said, "That sounds really cool, my Bridgette."

She giggled and kissed his cheek. Maybe it was the thought of wearing Izzy's garter, but her attention wandered for a few seconds. Looking around, she asked him, "Have you seen Izzy and Ezekiel? Are they still here?"

"I think they went somewhere to be alone, for a short while," Geoff said. "They just wanted a little time alone before we all head back to the hotel."

* * *

The newlyweds were seated next to the edge of the roof of the church. Ezekiel was in a folding chair, and Izzy was in his lap. The two looked over the side as they cuddled.

"Gorgeous view," she purred. "This why you brought me up here?"

"That, and because there were a lot of things you wanted to do that involved heights for our honeymoon, eh," he said with a chuckle. "Mountain climbing, bungee jumping, hang gliding."

She chuckled and added, "Skydiving too, if we could do it without getting on a plane."

"All of which I could ever do, eh."

Izzy cackled, and stroked his face. "Well, I wouldn't anything bad to happen to us right after being married. I guess we'll just stay in our hotel room for the next few days."

Ezekiel didn't get it at first, but when she wiggled her eyebrows and giggled, he caught on. He blushed, then held her tight. "You've bin so patient, Izzy. Thank you so much, and I hope I live up to your expectations, eh."

"You couldn't let me doo'n, my Zeke."

He kissed her cheek, and whispered, "I hope never to, my Dizzy Izzy."

"I'm all yours now. And you're all mine!"

She snuggled her cheek against his, sighing happily. "You know that old saying, 'Love isn't easy'?"

"Yep."

"With us, love ain't easy, it's Ezzy."

She leaned in and kissed him. "And I know it's gonna be Ezzy for the rest of our lives, no matter how crazy or difficult it gets, no matter if aliens abduct us or a zombie invasion happens, or if we're on this show until we're eighty-five, or if I grow a beard..."

She took a deep breath, then kissed him again. "Well, you get the idea, eh. We'll always be Ezzy."

"You can count on that."

* * *

**End of Part 15.

* * *

**

One more chapter to go, but because of the nature, I highly suggest anyone under sixteen not read the second half of the next one. The first half will be more comments and interactions between some of the other contestants, just so we don't have a lemon chapter. Mmm, lemons.

If you have any questions, you may ask in your comments. But just to sum one thing up, I know that Izzy's family does strike a sad note in many people's hearts. It's just how the story had to swing, because the reason for Izzy's sorry was her family, and they weren't going to turn around be cheery for her wedding. Besides, she's got some great new in-laws!

Writing Ezzy is so much fun. Oh, and be sure to vote in my new poll; it might influence some of my newest works. \wink, wink\


	16. Izzy and Ezekiel Ever After

**Disclaimer** - All rights belong to Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and the creators of TDI and TDA. No profit is being made in the making of the fanfiction. This alternate-universe episode of TDI contains stunts performed by written teens. Do not try any of this at home (except for the kissing and more, but with non-family members).

**The Kobold Necromancer's Warning** - _I highly suggest you don't read the second part of the chapter unless you are okay with sex scenes. You can skip to the end, but please, don't report me or anything. And most of all, don't come to me complaining beavers have infested the woodwork of your house, because I cannot do anything about it._

_If you want to skip the mature content, read the first part, and then just look up the word "Epilogue" and let the Find engine do the work for you.

* * *

_

**Chapter 16** - Our Wedding Night, Mrawr!

* * *

Leshawna watched when Izzy and Ezekiel danced. Despite herself, she was enthralled by the newly married couple. "Aren't they something together?" she asked Harold.

"They do look perfect together, despite all the beliefs we had," he acknowledged, though his eyes were mostly on Leshawna. The dress he had bought for her was gorgeous, and he was fantasizing about dancing with her at their own wedding.

Leshawna caught him looking, and smirked. "Wanna dance, baby?"

"I sure do, my chocolate goddess!"

They weren't the only ones watching Ezekiel and Izzy. Heather was watching the newlyweds closely. "So, how long do you think this'll last?" she asked DJ, who was feeding Bunny in the seat next to her. "Two years? No, that's way too long. The next season?"

"I'm sorry, Heather, but what will last?"

"Their marriage. You honestly think Home School and Crazy Girl will last?"

He frowned at her. "Of course I do, Heather. And you should be nice, it's their wedding."

"Weddings are a sham," Heather grumbled as she sipped her drink. "My parents' marriage is a sham, most of my... acquaintances at school, their parents' marriage is a sham."

"My parents' marriage wasn't, and all my friends' parents are happily married," DJ said, shaking a finger. "Remember what we talked about? Just because it doesn't fit in your ideals doesn't mean it doesn't work. Have respect."

"You always manage to bring your mother into the conversation," she remarked, sighing. "One day, I'm going to have to meet her, since I know _everything_ about her."

"You'll have to shape up," he said with a sly smile, "or she'll give you the back of her hand."

Heather rolled her eyes, then looked at Izzy and Ezekiel again. "You really think," she asked, more tenderly now, "that they'll, as they like to say, live happily ever after?"

"I believe so."

She shrugged, then looked at him. "Well... I'll give them the benefit of the doubt then. It'll be interesting, to say the least."

Noah was sitting down nearby Heather and DJ, panting like crazy. "Eva," he moaned, "I'm not dancing with you any more! Not until the slow dance, at least!"

Eva grinned, whipping her hair back. "Wimp. I have to admit, Izzy picks good music."

He groaned and leaned back. "Man, it's that fast, crazy music I expect from her."

"You know, I think she's mellowed out a little, now that she and Home School are together. Heh," she chuckled, "never thought I'd say that."

"How can you tell? She's still as wild as ever, from my point of view."

"True, on a scale of one to ten on insanity, Izzy scores a twelve. But she used to be a fifteen. Still too high, but less insane."

Noah couldn't help but grin. "When you get philosophical like that, it really turns you on."

"Well, it's an old saying that weddings get the romance up. Wanna make love tonight, Noah?"

His grin was even wider now. "Oh yeah, Eva baby."

She couldn't help but laugh. "Noah, you using slang like that is just hilarious. But kind of cute."

Duncan was sitting with Beth and Justin. The short girl and the male model were exchanging chitchat, eating and feeding each other when they tasted something they really liked. Duncan was a little disgusted by the lovey-dovey actions, but he felt it best to be hidden for now.

"Maybe now Izzy will stop that joke about me dating her," Justin mused.

"Nah, but I still wonder what you two did that makes you think you two were dating," Beth said with a giggle.

"No idea. But hey, I'll be gracious to her on her wedding, and I will stay away from her."

"Aww, if I can forgive you, why can't she?"

They exchanged a kiss, to which Duncan groaned. They both frowned at him, and Justin remarked, "Dude, if you don't want to see us kiss, why are you sitting with us?"

"I have to stay away from Courtney," he grumbled.

"Why on earth would you want to do that?" Beth asked.

"Because everyone knows at weddings, chicks get really romantic, and they want to get married. She'll be all over me with questions, like, 'When are you planning on marrying me?' and other stuff like that!"

"When _are_ you planning on marrying her?" Beth asked, grinning impishly.

"Beth, my little friend, let me tell you something," Duncan said, "because you should know this before you and Handsome there get married. Marriage means much less sex. And the longer I delay that, the better?"

"Oh really now?"

Duncan froze, and looked around to see Courtney there, standing there with her arms crossed. Her face was tightened in a dark scowl.

"Errr, I love you?" Duncan asked, before making a mad dash for the door.

"Get back here, you ogre," Courtney half-shouted, trying to be decent for the wedding. "I'll show you what!"

* * *

When the wedding reception was over, Geoff was driving his girlfriend and the newlyweds home. The party animal was smiling almost as much as the two in the back, but something felt off to him.

"Why aren't you two making out back there?" he asked them.

Bridgette would have elbowed him, if he had not been driving. So she simply glared at him.

"Well, of course we're not going to make out, because I'm way too excited," Izzy said, chuckling. "If we starting making out on our wedding night, it might go spiraling out of control, right back here."

Ezekiel chuckled, but was turning bright red. Bridgette looked back at them, and said, "Do you two... um... need protection?"

"Naw, we'll be good, eh," Ezekiel said, putting his hand on Izzy's knee and looking at his wife's bright green eyes. "Izzy wants to have kids as soon as possible."

"Maybe getting knocked up will get us off the shoo', eh," Izzy giggled.

"I thought you liked being on the show, Izzy?" asked Geoff.

"I do! But Ezekiel doesn't, and as everyone keeps wishing we have a good life as soon as we're off the shoo'!"

Izzy rested her head on her husband's shoulder. "We're still thinking a'boot names for our kids."

"Why not E-Scope?" Geoff suggested.

Bridgette was seriously considering elbowing him right now.

"Nah, I want something original for our kids," Izzy said. "But you know what would be awesome? If I had twins! Or triplets! What's the record for a human litter?"

Ezekiel tapped his chin in thought. "I think decaplets, that's ten offspring, is the knoo'n record."

"I don't know if ten is going to be possible," Bridgette said, looking at Izzy's stomach as if to judge. "I mean, how can you fit ten little ones in you when you're that thin, Izzy?"

"I could try fitting a couple in a box or something," Izzy said, drumming her fingers together. "If I have ten girls, I could name them Beth, Bridgette, Sadie, Katie, Leshawna, Lindsay, Heather, Eva, Courtney, and Gwen!"

"Why name one Heather?" Geoff asked. "I thought you didn't like her."

"I don't, but naming my daughter Heather would be to show not all girls named Heather are total bitches!"

"What if you have ten boys, eh?" Ezekiel asked, smiling at her. "You name them all after the other ten boys, including Justin to prove that not all boys named Justin are jerks?"

Izzy giggled and kissed his cheek. "What do you think, my Zeke? You want ten kids?"

Geoff couldn't help but burst out laughing, and Bridgette finally elbowed him, but mostly to keep his attention back to the road.

* * *

**(Mature content, please move along if you are under 16.)**

Ezekiel insisted to carry Izzy over the threshold. She was delighted, but when he had to carry her all the flights of stairs to get to his room, he was completely out of breath. The two had agreed to his room, because hers was, as per tradition of her room at all the hotels they had been at during the show, a total mess.

"Oh, maybe I should have just stopped at the entrance, eh," he moaned as he collapsed on the bed.

Izzy giggled and sat down next to him. "I thought the extra effort was very romantic."

He groaned and sat up. "If you say so, my Dizzy-Izzy. My," he smiled and pulled her close to kiss her, "dizzy wife!"

She smiled at him, then sniffed. "Ooo, you really worked up a sweat, my darling husband," she remarked. "Want to take a shower first?

He sniffed himself, and noticed that he was beginning to smell. "Um, oo'kay. You doo'nt mind waiting?"

"Of course not! We could always shower together," she said, grinning at him. "We did it once, you remember?"

"Oh, I do, eh," he said, flushing slightly. "But I doo'nt want our first time in the shower, and I...," he very nervously tapped his fingers together, "doo'nt knoo' how well I can contain myself a second time, eh."

"Me neither, babe. It was amazing we came out as virgins first time, eh," she said, rubbing his shoulder. "You go shower. I want to get dressed for tonight, and I'll hang up what I want you to wear on the door hook," she said as she stood up, fiddling with her dress.

"Isn't it tradition fur me to...," he blushed more as he talked, "take off your wedding dress for our wedding night?"

"I think it is, but I cannot bear the fact of throwing this garment on the ground. You see," she turned around and winked at him, "I promised Bridgette that'd I keep it in good condition for her. Turns out we're the same size."

Ezekiel let out a laugh, one of mirth. "Geoff proposed? How did I miss that, eh?"

"No, he didn't yet, but I'm sure he will soon. Did you see him bowl over the men to get my garter?" she cackled. "Anyway, unzip me, hon, and then go shower, eh. You being clean sounds wonderful."

He helped unzip her, and before he went into the bathroom, he couldn't help but sneak a peek at her undressing. She was wearing white underwear, something that she didn't really want to do because she thought it would be more exciting to wear black underwear. Ezekiel thought the white underwear on her was very attractive.

After his shower, making sure to scrub himself down well, he took time to brush and comb his hair. Wanting to look his very best for her, he nervously looked down at himself. Though Izzy had seen him naked before, he was worried if would good enough, or large enough, to please her. He also wondered if she was wondering the same thing.

Trying to ease his worries, he looked at what she had left on the hook for him to wear. Despite having dated her for two years, what she had picked managed to surprise him.

Izzy was brushing her hair as she sat on the bed. She was thinking about Ezekiel, and if this would be enjoyable to him. He was always so nervous whenever she advanced their relationship sexually. Keeping themselves virgins had been hard at times, for her mostly but sometimes for him when she was really all over him.

She kept thinking about how to make it slow, how to make him happy, and to assure him that he was good enough. She knew he would be, there was no doubt in that wild mind of hers.

When the door opened, she smiled at her husband. He was wearing his green jacket, gray shirt, his loose-fitting jeans, and that wonderful, blue toque. "I thought that we should be how we first looked when really met."

He grinned, looking at her in her green top with that upside-down heart-shaped hole for her cleavage, and the green skirt that always reminded her of a female Tarzan. "You look so gorgeous," he said as he approached her. "Funny how it works, eh."

"How what works?"

"We wear the same thing fur all the episodes of the shoo' and yet you still look so special in it," he gushed, approaching her and holding her in his arms.

"Guess it's special because they manage to last through it all," she said, resting her forehead against his.

"Well, remember during the third season, when that tree branch snagged your top?"

"Oh doo'nt remind me," she cackled. "You sure got an eyeful."

They kissed, then kissed again. Izzy stroked his butt, and he cupped her face. They continued to make out until they fell on the bed, and Izzy giggled as she began to paw at his clothing.

"Wonderful to see you in it, but it'd look better on the bedroom floor, eh," she said, grinning wickedly at him.

She removed his jacket and shirt, and began to kiss his chest. Izzy loved to teethe his nipples, or as she liked to say, "nip the nips." Ezekiel always grunted and gasped when she did that, something she loved to hear; she was very careful not to hurt him.

He was almost whimpering when she sucked on them; Izzy had assured him that all men have sensitive nipples. When he wondered how she knew that, she explained that it was because she gave her enemies purple nurples. However rough Izzy was with her enemies' nipples, she was very loving to Ezekiel's.

"Just wanna get you in the mood for when we do it, eh," she giggled as she licked him. He winced in pleasure, combing her red hair. It was soft and silky due to her brushing it recently, and he loved the feel. "Though I am rather anxious..."

"Two years of foreplay, what's a few moo'r minutes befur we're one, eh?"

She laughed. Ezekiel removed her top and went for her chest once she was done with his. He loved her breasts, and she teased them about this by giving them several different nicknames; one dinner with their friends, she kept referring to her "lady lumps," and he panicked because he thought it was a medical problem.

"Hmmm, that's nice," she purred as she combed his hair with her agile fingers. It was still damp from the shower, and smelt faintly of the strawberry shampoo Izzy insisted they use. She giggled as he licked her nipples the same way she did to him. "Very nice, my Zeke."

He continued to suck on her breasts, causing her to coo appreciatively. She reached down and undid his pants. When she reached down to remove them, she accidentally slid off the bed and landed on her back on the floor, his pants in her hands.

They both burst out into laughter, and he helped her back up. He helped remove her skirt, and then noticed she was still wearing the white underwear from the wedding.

"I know you really liked them," she whispered to him, "so I figured I would wear them for tonight. You've seen my green ones enough, eh."

"What a'boot your black ones?" he asked with a sly smile.

"Nah, we'll save that for the next couple days, when we get wild. Black is a naughty aphrodisiac, white is a romantic one."

He kissed her just above her panties, then she helped to pull them down. As she removed his underwear, the two were naked on the bed. She laid down, then posed; the come-hither look she gave him made him shiver in anticipation.

"I think some couples do oral sex or something like that," she said, then waved her hands, "but screw that! I want you to make me an official woman!"

Ezekiel couldn't help but laugh as she said this, and she grinned while adding, "Yeah, that's right, Zeke! Ride me like a horse! People are always saying I need to get laid, now it's time."

He continued to laugh until she sat up to clasp her hands with his. "Are you nervous, my Zeke?"

"A... a little, eh. How did you knoo', eh?"

"Psychologically, most people laugh when they're happy and nervous at the same time. Also, you're blushing."

He laughed again, and she kissed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him close, and continued to kiss him until he was a lot calmer. That was replaced when he began to shiver, and while she held him close, Izzy realized she too was starting to shake a little.

"It's okay, my Zeke," she whispered. "We can... take as much as time as you need," she was swallowing a couple lumps that appeared in her throat.

"O... okay," he said, holding her hands for comfort. "How is it that you're not nervous, Izzy?"

"Oh, I am," she assured him. "Just that I know it will all be fine."

"You're so much braver than I am, eh," he said, looking into her eyes. "You knoo', I never... really told you this, or at least not directly, but you've always bin my hero."

"Your... hero?"

"Yes, eh. I... I always admired you, Izzy, and inspired me to be brave," he sniffed, and then wiped a tear away from his eye. "I knoo' that I woo'dent be the person I am today with'oot you, and... and... I sometimes wonder what I did to deserve being with you."

Izzy bit her bottom lip, and caressed his face. "You always had that strength, my Zeke."

"You remember how we met because Eva threw me in the pool? Remember why she threw me in?" She shook her head, and he said, "Because I was standing up fur you, eh. I wanted to brave fur back then... you knoo' how some people say that they knoo' they loved someone befur they met them?

"I... I actually knoo' what they mean by that, eh. I... I love you so much, Izzy. You're my love, and my hero."

Izzy swallowed a lump in her throat, one that felt bigger than any of the ones she had got during this emotional day. "Ezekiel," she whispered, cuddling close to him, "you're my hero too. You helped me overcome the biggest problems I had, the ones I thought I would never solve."

She pulled his face down and kissed him. "I may have changed a lot from being with you, and I know that my life may not be as daring, but it will still be just as exciting.

"So c'mon... it's time for us to make love."

She reached down and began to massage his manhood, helping him get excited. He shivered, beginning to pant. He started to feel her womanhood with his fingertips, and she let out a happy coo.

"No need to be so shy, my lovely Zeke," she chirped, "we've been here before."

He nodded, then poked a couple fingers into her womanhood. She hissed in air and stroked him harder, making him cry out softly. The two had done this before during of their most intimate moments beforehand, but not to prepare for something more.

After a few seconds, Izzy laid back down and Ezekiel positioned himself over her. "You sure you doo'nt want me to protect myself?" he asked.

She shook her head, her red hair splaying on the pillow. "No way, Zeke. I want your babies, as the old fan girl saying goes."

He laughed, then he tried to get himself to enter her. It was actually more difficult than either thought it would be, and she had to help.

"Man, it's not like this in the dirty stories," she joked, both of them giggling and squirming to get Ezekiel into her. "You think most people who write that stuff have ever been laid, eh?"

It took a couple minutes, and Izzy started to name all kinds of lubricants to help with the job. When she was saying "peanut butter and jelly," Ezekiel managed to push his way in. Izzy gasped, then winced when she felt herself in pain.

"Ow," she cringed. "Damn it... I forgot that it hurts at first!"

"Just the first time, right?" Ezekiel panted. "Do you need me to pull 'oot for a bit-"

"No way," Izzy strained to say, trying to ignore the pain. "I've had worse than this. Only the first time, Zeke... ngggh... damn, it does hurt though."

"Try to think of something... else," he suggested, brushing away the orangish-red bangs from her forehead, which were stuck there from the sweat that Izzy was building up. Ezekiel was also beginning to sweat, especially around his shoulders and forehead.

"Well, I can think of more painful times," Izzy said with a grimacing smile, "like the one I got in a fight with a mad anteater, or the time I cut myself trying to punch my alarm clock, or... or... ohhhh..."

Izzy suddenly moaned and stretched, taking deep breaths. Her eyes panned up, then her eyelids fluttered as she looked at her husband. "You're... you're inside me, Zeke."

"Yeah," he said, wiping away the sweat from his forehead.

"You're really inside me," she repeated, then giggled. "We're not virgins anymore, eh."

"Nope..."

"Say good-bye to that virginity, never liked it anyway!"

"Oh Izzy..."

"What? Upset I cannot wear white anymore?"

"You're so beautiful..."

Izzy's face was flushed, and a little slick from the sweat buildup. Her breath was hot on his face, as was his on hers. She pulled him down on her, their chests pressing against each other. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, making him feel safe and secure.

"You're so handsome too, my Zeke," she whispered. She marveled his own flushed face, and how appealing he looked when sweat had slicked his skin. She cooed appreciatively when he wrapped his arms underneath her shoulders; now she felt as secure and warm as he did.

"Ready, baby?" she asked, her eyes burning with anxiousness.

"Just... gimme one minute, eh," he panted, kissing her neck lightly. Izzy was so tight and hot around him, he could barely breathe.

"Okay, my Zeke. Just... tell me when." Izzy forced herself to breath in and out as she waited for him to get ready. Being completely wrapped around him, him inside of her made her feel complete, whole. "We really are one now, you feel that?"

"Yes, I do," he whispered. "I... I think I'm ready now."

She nodded, and he slowly began to move his hips. Both of them winced from the sharp pleasure, hissing air and gasping. Ezekiel was the first to moan, and Izzy let out a high-pitched grunt as he picked up a little speed.

"We're actually having sex," she whispered, her voice loving and excited. "It... it really does feel good, doesn't it?"

He nodded, and kissed her. She sucked on his lips and tongue, anxiously wanting more. She began to rock her hips into his, increasing the intensity of the rhythm. Pretty soon, both of them were picking up the pace.

Izzy's panting was getting higher in octave, and Ezekiel's moans came faster. He couldn't help but be loud, and when he tried to hold back, she could sense it and said to him quickly, "Don't hold back. I love you... oh... let it all out, my Zeke."

It didn't take long for them to reach a climax, but that didn't damper the sensation of their orgasms. Izzy and Ezekiel both cried out, their limbs tightening around each other. Their toes and fingers curled from the intensity, and Izzy herself shook a few times before collapsing. Ezekiel lay on top of her, both of them panting hard.

There were no words for several minutes, just them holding onto each other and listening to the other breathe. The one to break the silence was Ezekiel.

"That was... amazing," he whispered to her.

"Oh, I want to make up new words to describe it," she replied, giggling very softly. "I wonder if 'incrediawesoverymindblowshocking' will describe it adequately."

He laughed, very throaty and hearty. Cupping her face, he kissed her lovingly. She returned it, reaching up to comb his hair.

"We're going to do this much more, you know," she said, giggling, mellow but still mischievous. "We're going to make love as many times as we can before we have to go back on the show. Otherwise, I might take you in whatever confessional we have; we might not even leave this room."

"But what would we do fur eating, eh?"

"Room service."

"Hopefully we'll get dressed befur they come in the room, right?"

Izzy cackled, and rolled them over, her on top now. They began to kiss, and didn't stop exhaustion from having sex took in. Even then, they caressed each other and gave each other light, grazing kisses.

"I love you, my handsome husband."

"I love you, my beautiful wife."

He fell asleep first, and she held him close to her. She listened to the sound of him breathing, the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

"_You're my hero and my savior, Ezekiel_," she thought, "_and I'll love you until my last breath, whether it's quiet or loud and screaming. You are my angel, until the end of time._"

* * *

**(Epilogue)**

It took nineteen seasons of Total Drama before Chris Maclean finally let the twenty-two contestants go home. They were all twenty-one or older by the time they were finally free, and despite how confident he was, Chris found himself at the losing side of some very strong lawsuits.

Ezekiel and Izzy's first time to make love had been special indeed: exactly nine months after their wedding, she went into labor. During her pregnancy, she had not been a contestant during the ninth and tenth season; when Ezekiel was contacted while he was on the show, he had rushed off to be with her.

Izzy gave birth to triplets, something the doctors somehow managed to notice; Ezekiel joked how she was "literally full of surprises." The two girls and one boy were named Vera, Kitty, and Crow (Izzy loved animals, and explained Vera would be nicknamed "Vera-ciraptor").

For most of the seasons, Ezekiel and Izzy insisted on at least one of them being left out until so they could watch over the kids. During the later seasons, Ezekiel's mom was there to watch the kids so her son and daughter-in-law could participate; he even managed to win the seventeenth season.

The romance had continued on after Izzy and Ezekiel's wedding. Not only were there more marriages, but also, more so near the end, more children.

Just as Izzy had told Ezekiel, Geoff and Bridgette had been married next. The wedding was incredible, and the redhead kept teasing the two that she despised them for outdoing her wedding; Bridgette's first child was a girl named Anilya.

Duncan and Courtney were next, and Izzy helped the CIT with her aggressive family, who were almost as against Courtney marrying as Izzy's parents were for her.

The other couples to get married were Leshawna and Harold, Cody and Gwen, Justin and Beth, and Eva and Noah. The rest of the contestants all dated on and off, among each other, and they stayed on good terms until the show was finally over.

All the unmarried contestants at the end of the show were going to go home single, eager to start their own lives; however, Lindsay and Tyler actually got back together at the last day, and stayed in contact. About two years later, Ezekiel, who stayed in constant contact with Tyler, was his best man at the wedding.

Ezekiel and Izzy went on to have three more kids, after the show was over, balancing the family life and college. Izzy's boundless energy was what kept Ezekiel going most of the time, and he kept reminding her how much he loved her and how she was his hero.

Izzy became a published writer after getting a degree in English. Her best-selling action series was so big of a hit, she had to go out and make some adventurers of her own for more creative inspiration. Ezekiel became a teacher, just like his parents before him, and he taught several different languages.

One day, their youngest daughter, Ami, asked them a big question. She was old enough to watch the Total Drama episodes, and was keen to learn more about how mom and dad met. "Did you and mommy regret joining that awful shoo' when you forced to stay on it for so long, eh daddy?"

"How could we regret it?" Ezekiel said, flipping a red haired bang of his daughter. "It's how your mother and I met. You wouldn't exist if it weren't fur the shoo', eh."

"Plus, daddy won half a million dollars," Izzy said gleefully. "We got us some swag loot, including a real katana sword!"

She mimed a few slices, and Ezekiel laughed. Ami giggled, and then looked nervous as she asked her next question. "So, um, if it'll help me find my true love, can i join a reality shoo', eh?"

"No way, eh!"

"Of course, sweetheart!"

Ezekiel and Izzy exchanged glances, and their daughter laughed. "Does mommy have to convince daddy noo', eh?"

"We'll talk a'boot it, eh. Now make sure you've packed everything. Uncle Geoff and Aunt Bridgette would prefer not to have to come here and get anything you've forgotten, eh."

Izzy smiled as her daughter pouted, the same kind of pout Izzy had once been known for. "Why do we have to stay with them? Just because Crow married Anilya?"

"That, and they've bin lonely since their kids have all moved 'oot, dear," Ezekiel said. "You should knoo', when a couple's kids move 'oot of the hoo's, parents go through a little withdrawal."

Ami nodded. "Oh, oo'kay. But won't you two be lonely with'oot me and Jed?"

" 'Jed and me'," Izzy corrected her, smiling at her daughter. "And no, no we won't."

"Alrighty then," Ami replied cheerfully as Ezekiel frowned at his wife. The young girl skipped merrily off to her room.

"She knew I was joking, eh," Izzy said to her husband after their daughter had left.

"I knoo', I'm just a little woo'ried, is all."

"You're always woo'ried, always afraid you might mess up with the kids. Well, they've turned out fine so far, love."

She rubbed his back, and he smiled at her. Izzy fiddled with his toque, a new one since his days on Total Drama; the old one was sealed in a glass case Izzy had bought.

"So, what is this vacation from the kids fur, eh?" he asked as she continued to rub his back. "Why aren't we staying here, eh?"

"Because it's bin a long time since we had a trip, and I made reservations," she explained. "You see, next week, we watch over Geoff and Bridgette's house when they get to go to Hawaii, which is where Bridgette has always wanted to go."

"I'm surprised they still haven't gone there yet, eh. So where are we going?"

She grinned, that wicked, Izzy-style grin that had not changed after nineteen seasons on a reality show, six pregnancies, twenty-three years of watching her children, and being forty-one years.

Izzy's sly and crafty personality was just as sexy and wonderful as it was when she was eighteen years old. "Well, I figured that would be a surprise," she said, giggling.

"Is it Australia?"

She gaped at him. "How did you know?" she exclaimed.

"You've bin mentioning kangaroos fur the past few days, and calling me 'mate.' I thought it was a come-on until you started using it when the kids were around."

He smiled at her, and added as he scratched the back of his head, "Did you have anything planned, eh? I always wanted to see the wilderness of Australia... if that's what you had in mind, eh? I knoo' you'd love to see the 'ootback."

He was still shy after all this time. After all the time on Total Drama and in college, twenty-three years of marriage, and lots and lots of sex between them, he was still shy, courteous, and thoughtful. At forty-one years old, she still saw him as the eighteen year old prairie boy she had fallen in love with.

And she still was in love with.

"Oh, I do want to see the outback," she said as she sat in his lap, straddling him playful. "I also want to throw a boomerang, check out the food there, and just listen to them talk! But there is one place I want to see more than anything."

"The Sydney Opera House? The Great Barrier Reef? Uluru? Telstra Stadium?" **[1]**

"An Australian hotel."

He chuckled and smiled at her. He still did that when she was forward, and she loved it; it always made her feel desirable, and in return it made him desirable too.

"Crikey, you gonna get stuffed in Australia, mate," Izzy cooed, making him blush. **[2] **Score one for her, she loved making him blush. "Of course, we could always make love on top of Uluru."

"I doo'nt knoo' if they alloo' people up there, eh."

"Who needs permission? I didn't need permission when I shaved off all of Chris Maclean's hair at the final season, did I?"

"No, but as much as we all loved it, you did steal the limelight from Tyler when he won it all."

"Oh, he got the girl and the money. Which is what you are going to get down under, mate. I am gonna make you hear the thunder."

"What's that mean?"

Ami was standing nearby, looking confused. Ezekiel panicked, but Izzy was calm. "It means mommy and daddy are going to have a wild time," she replied.

"Does mommy have to hide from the RCMP a'geen, daddy?"

"No, mommy was kidding when she said she had to do that one time, hon," Ezekiel told his daughter.

"Oh good. Because you were really sad when she wasn't around, and I doo'nt like seeing you that sad."

She walked up and hugged her parents, then went back to her room to pack more. Izzy smiled at Ezekiel and said, "She does take after you."

"How do you figure that?"

"She's sweet, loving, and a precious wonder. Just like you."

She wrapped her arms around him as she sweetly kissed him, him returning it with equal passion. "I actually," she whispered when they parted, "wanted to make it just like when we first met, eh, so I made sure there is a pool."

"Oh goody, eh."

"It's bin a long time since we did it in a pool, eh."

"Izzy!"

"And remember the look on Bridgette's face when she accidentally saw us."

"Oh, why must you torment me with embarrassing moments of my life, eh?"

"Because it's fun," she cheered, kissing his face before staring into his brown eyes and adding, "And because I love you so, my Zeke."

"I love you too, my Dizzy-Izzy."

* * *

**Crikey! It's THE END!

* * *

**

Yep, that's it. That's my Ezzy story. It actually wasn't easy, but I think the effort I put into it paid off.

I wish to say thank you to everyone for their encouragement and support during this story. It certainly took longer than I thought it would.

Also, a big shout out to Imagi and Winter-Rae. The two of you were so helpful during this story, I want to give you both a big shout out! Woohoo!

Now that this story is done, I have one more story I want to write before the sequel to Total Drama Comeback, so please don't ask if that's next.

**[1]** - You should all know what the Sydney Opera House is. The Great Barrier Reef is a large coral reef located on the northeast coast of Australia. Uluru is a great hill in the northern territory that you probably see in lots of pictures; you'll recognize it because it's got a flat top. Telstra Stadium is where the 2000 Olympic games were held.

**[2]** - "Get stuffed" is Australian slang which is similar to a very inappropriate saying here. I'll just say it's a dirty way of saying, "Get laid." So when you're in Australia and you've had a lot to eat, don't say, "I'm stuffed," or people are going to look at you funny.

Ezekiel, Izzy, may more people write about friendship and love between the two of you, because the shy prairie boy and the wild redhead interacting never gets old. :)


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